Lifted Up

by Tomas the Betrayer

Sequel to 'Hammered Down'. Under the shadow of a heaven ruled by monsters, Rukia Kuchiki continues to fulfill her duties with new lives and hearts added to the mix. And above all, there is a mother's love.

27. Winter's Touch: Cold Shoulder

"Nice to see you, Hitsugaya-taichou," Lieutenant Abarai nodded.

"Thanks for having me." The captain stepped past the gate portal. He threw a surreptitious look around and breathed an inward sigh of relief. Thankfully Captain Odelschvank had not chosen to accompany her subordinate. One less thing to worry about.

You cannot avoid her forever. People will start to talk.

Let them. At least they won't jump me when I'm not looking.

The Second Seat of Siamese took up step beside his smaller coworker. "Sorry it took so long to contact you. We've been out of touch." They passed through the tents that made up the Gotei 7's nominal base of operations here in Hueco Mundo. Some fighters standing around nudged one another and pointed the pair out to their colleagues, bowing respectfully as they passed. Renji waved them off to let them know to get back to business. "It's been hard to keep track of their movements. They're on the move constantly."

"Still, I was expecting contact a lot sooner," Hitsugaya spoke in a somewhat accusing manner as he soldiered through ankle-deep mounds of sand.

"We always have to send a messenger to locate them, and finding their trail nowadays takes time." In a sheepish tone he added, "They never keep a fixed home since… well, Rose and Love. Shinji said it was to keep from growing complacent."

"Hmm." The captain tried not to let his irritation show. It had confused him the first time he tried to send a hell butterfly to Hirako Shinji and his cohorts only for the spectral insect to return to him immediately. That was unusual in his experience. It was true after the Vaizard abandoned their old retreat in Hueco Mundo they never bothered to set up a new one. But even without a fixed locale, a hell butterfly should have been able to reach them without any trouble.

When first approaching Siamese for help in contacting the Vaizard, he had been informed of the issue. It turned out hell butterflies only worked for shinigami, and apparently the Vaizard no longer applied. No doubt from the Hollow mixed in. Which left them to fall back on less convenient methods of communication.

That was three months ago. Which left him stuck in the same position as before. His training with Kurosaki was a welcome distraction. Fighting against a person so overwhelmingly stronger than him had only served to remind the young warrior just how far he had to go before he could face an opponent on the level of Aizen with any confidence. But if he did intend to fight a mad god boasting both shinigami and Hollow powers, on top of being able to confound an enemy's senses to an absurd degree, then one single sparring partner, no matter how strong, could not prepare him fully. So once again, he was forced to resort to resources outside normal shinigami channels. Considering the opponent he must face, it didn't even qualify as overkill.

At last they came to the officer's pavilion and stepped inside. There Hiyori Sarugaki looked up from her position squatting on a carpet and smirked. "What's up, Short Stack?"

That's rich coming from you, he thought. Aloud the young warrior responded… "I'm only a hundred years old, what's your excuse?"

For just a moment both Renji and the Vaizard stared at him like they hadn't expected this level of sass. Then Hiyori's face broke out in a fierce sneer. "Somebody put on his big boy pants today." She then hopped upright and strode towards the tent flap, barging past them with casual authority. "C'mon, then, O Mighty Captain. Let's get this over with quick. Some of us have real work to do!"

Without so much as a goodbye she took off, vanishing in a spray of sand. Scowling, Hitsugaya dusted off his cloak. This is my childhood all over again. He nodded a quick thanks to Abarai before streaking away in pursuit.

It took only a second for him to catch up, and then they were racing across the limitless dunes. Not for the first time, Tōshirō took note of how truly barren this dimension was. Not so much as a twisted tree sprouted from the ground. Could Hueco Mundo have been alive once? Did the Hollows always inhabit it? Hard to imagine anything living here now, even those heartless scavengers. It existed only as a warning, a sign of what might have been had they lost the war for Soul Society.

The journey was so long they passed three shinigami patrols, one Siamese and two from Tiger by the look of them. His legs were starting to ache by the time he finally detected a huge concentration of soul power in the distance. That feeling only increased when the glow of a bonfire on the horizon caught his eye. Hiyori steered towards it and he followed.

Upon drawing closer, Hitsugaya was surprised at what his senses were telling him. It therefore came as no surprise to find not only two of the Vaizard seated around the flames chewing on shish-ka-bob, but also Kenpachi Zaraki himself. The spiky-haired mountain sat sharing their fire with his lieutenant Yachiru Kusajishi.

"I brought him," his guide declared as she stomped over and flopped down on the sand. The blond pixie accepted a skewer from the impassive Lisa Yadomaru, who saluted their guest. "Greetings, Hitsugaya-taichou."

"Grab some grub, kid," bulky Kensei Muguruma flashed a smile that might have been intended as encouraging but only served to raise Hitsugaya's hackles. "We're almost done here." He then turned his attention back to the Kenpachi, face growing grim as he did. "We don't intend to go it alone. But it would take an army to cover the dead zone. We've scouted it, the thing's not limitless. Neliel says there's a region towards the center where Barragan used to hold court. Supposedly the storm's so bad at that point it turned the ground to solid glass. She only survived because Aizen was with her."

Zaraki tore off a length of meat, mushrooms and veggies and swallowed with nary a chew. "I ain't running around a fucking dust cloud just to bag some half-dead twerp," he snarled, that lone ochre eye narrowed in implicit threat. "I got my own business to deal with."

"Come on, Captain," Lisa spoke in a coaxing fashion. "It's no big secret that heavy hitters among Hollows are hard to find these days. You've seen to that. So if it's a fight you want…"

"It's not," the Kenpachi grumbled.

"… then you should come wi…" Lisa paused, blinking. "What?"

She and the other Vaizard exchanged confused looks. For his part, Hitsugaya stole a glance at little Yachiru to see what she might think of this. The pink-haired tyke lay on her stomach with chin resting on her hands, smiling delightedly. She looked happy enough to burst. Finally the little lieutenant leapt up and exclaimed, "We're in training!"

"Training?" Hiyori frowned. "For what?"

Kenpachi stared broodingly into the fire. "Bankai."

All conversation died at this admission. Crackling flames were the only sound to be heard. Unbeknownst to each other, the four fighters were experiencing the exact same reaction to that statement. Zaraki with a bankai…?!

Kensei remembered a nuclear mushroom cloud he had seen once.

Hitsugaya imagined the planet exploding.

Hiyori shuddered at the thought of both Zaraki and his lieutenant going bankai. And Lisa…

…was picturing the Kenpachi naked.

Hot.

Nah, I'd pass.

It was Tōshirō who recovered first. From what he could tell, the conversation had ended. But rather than launching into his own proposal, he saw an opportunity that hadn't previously been available suddenly present itself. It was true he had gone to Ichigo for sparring first, but that was partly due to not being sure he could even locate Zaraki, much less convince him to engage in training. And now he was right here, and admitting to being engaged in attempts at personal growth. Coincidence? Yes, but still, there wouldn't be a better time to ask. The only thing better than testing himself against one absurdly mighty opponent was two of them.

"Zaraki-taichou," he spoke up quickly before the Vaizard could recover. "I actually came here to discuss training myself. I'm currently engaged in bouts with Ichigo Kurosaki, but if you were open to the idea, perhaps you and I could also cross swords. When you have the time, that is."

To his dismay, that hulking murder-machine twisted his bullet-shaped head around to fix him with a dire grin. "Seem to recall you turning me down the last coupla times I challenged you to a fight. You and all those other pricks who were too good to wipe their own asses until Aizen and his bunch showed you up. In fact, Ichimaru was the only one with the balls to take me on. Made me kinda respect the fucker. Lot more than I can say for you."

Perhaps it wasn't such a brilliant idea to suggest drawing blood with this unholy lunatic. Still, Hitsugaya sought to press his case. "I can help you with bankai training," he urged. "And you can prepare me for the battles ahead. I mastered bankai in record time. I won't deny we've had our differences in the past, but this is mutually advantageous. If you help me, I'll help you."

The Vaizard were eyeing him as though he had lost his marbles. Tōshirō didn't care. Even if Zaraki did reject his offer, he could always turn to them for help as originally intended. In fact, he fully planned to do just that either way. Increasing his training partners could only help his growth. And just like the Vaizard and Kurosaki, Kenpachi Zaraki could be relied upon to buck the system should Lord-Commander Kuchiki scribble off a poem ordering them not to engage Hitsugaya in combat, controlled or not.

Zaraki watched him in inscrutable silence for a while. Then he gave a massive shrug. "I'm game."

Tōshirō didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed. "Thank you." He turned back to the three demi-Hollows. "Now, as to my other reason for being here–"

"But first you gotta beat Yachiru."

The boy captain hesitated, rounding on the Tiger leadership with a frown. "Excuse me?"

"We're in this together." Zaraki snagged another skewer and proceeded to take a savage bite, juices running down his chin. He wiped it across one sleeve and grinned in a feral manner while speaking with mouth full of food. "I don't waste my time with weaklings. You wanna take me on? First you give her a good fight. And don't hold nothing back, you hear?"

This certainly hadn't crossed his mind at the time. But it was a concession he felt willing to make. Lieutenant Kusajishi was a seasoned veteran of the Eleventh, after all, so she could certainly lay claim to having some notches on her bedpost… I mean, belt!

You have quite the salacious imagination.

Not now! Let me focus on this.

"Alright," he stated. "I agree."

Zaraki grunted. Then he looked down at his Second seat and said, "Get 'im."

"YAY!" The little girl hopped upright, bouncing with joy.

Hitsugaya drew back, startled. "Wait, what? You mean now…?"

"Here I come, Snow-jiisan!" Yachiru sang. "Hadō #4… BYAKURAI!"

What did she call m–OHSHIT!

The light of the campfire was overwhelmed in a blaze of raw electric power that burned away everything in a flash of intense white.

---

Elsewhere, Makizo Aramaki of Tiger Company looked up and called out to the rest of his patrol. "Hey, guys, check it out! Shooting star!"

He pointed to the limitless void above them. Sure enough, a small blaze of energy was streaking across the sky. The fearless fighters left off their sport long enough to appreciate this rare sight.

"Never saw any stars in Hueco Mundo before," one of them mused.

"Yeah. Weird." Makizo suddenly cocked his head to one side with a frown. "Is it… screaming?"

They all grew quiet. Sure enough, if you listened very carefully, you could detect a long, drawn-out howl as that tiny speck crossed the inky expanse far overhead.

It vanished into the distance. They all looked at one another, shrugged, and got back to business. "You chop me… I CHOP YOU!"

---

Ichigo Kurosaki was in heaven.

He lay with his head in Rukia's lap, eyes shut, at peace for the first time in ages. The store was closed for the day, his sisters were taking the kids to the park, and all their staff was enjoying a well-deserved break.

Delicate fingernails drew lines across his scalp in slow, light strokes. He felt muscles in his back go loose he hadn't even noticed were tense. It was like, for just this moment, the whole world felt right. Ichigo gave a contented groan.

"Shhh," Rukia admonished him. The woman he loved shifted slightly so he could get more comfortable before going back to caressing his scalp.

"Ishida and Michiru are getting married soon," he murmured.

Her fingers stilled, then resumed their blissfully skillful work. "Yes."

"Think we should go dressed up as our characters?"

"Maybe not." She kept up her soft caresses. "Our author friend still seems to be under the impression we haven't figured it out. And we wouldn't want to upstage her big day."

Ichigo's eyes opened to take in the sight of her, not for the first time marveling at his own luck in winning this amazing woman. "You remember after Jaku was born, I asked if you wanted to get hitched?"

She smiled while continuing her ministrations. "I remember. You are as romantic then as now."

"I know." He turned on his side and nuzzled his cheek against the fabric of her dress, reaching up to take one fine-boned hand and kiss it softly. She stroked his hair in rhythmic fashion. "So are you still satisfied? With us, like this, I mean?"

Momentary hesitation. "I am. Why?"

"Just wondering. I mean, things can't go on like this forever. Sooner or later, I'll have to quit the dojo and find a new line of work. Damned if I know what. Not many swell jobs available for guys without a college degree in Japan nowadays."

"You could enroll in a university," she pointed out. "Your sisters are heading off next semester. After they graduate…"

"We can't afford it," he sighed. "They've both got scholarships. And Dad is footing the bill. I won't ask him to do any more for me," he added when she seemed about to raise a point. "At my age a man can't keep relying on his parents or he'll wind up a disgrace."

"You are no such thing, Ichigo," she whispered in distress.

"Don't be worried. I'm just saying, a man has his pride. I need to take care of our family. You and the kids. So I'll need to be making some sacrifices in the future."

"Perhaps Ochi-sensei could find work for you in the public sector? She is deeply enmeshed in politics on both the state and local level now."

"I'm still convinced she's only doing all this to land Ishida's old man. Like take the governorship, then threaten to secede the whole province unless he ties the knot with her."

Rukia tweaked his ear playfully. "I think your view of marriage is slightly biased."

"Not my fault everyone we know is getting hitched." He turned in his privileged pillow and cracked an eye at her. "By the way, have you heard from Chad lately? I can't seem to get ahold of him, and for some reason the last few times I called, Ryō picked up his phone. You don't think…?

"I wouldn't be concerned. According to Michiru, Kunieda's family is very well-established. Apparently they are involved in a business with strong ties to the community."

"Oh." Ichigo stopped talking when she started running her fingers through his hair, letting all the remaining tension drain out of him with a sigh. "Feels good," he murmured, and kissed her hand again.

Rukia felt her heart quicken at this intimate treatment and had to fight down her own urges. They had agreed after Hiruko was born to be more careful about displays of passion. It still nagged at her slightly; not that she would have it any other way, but the explanation for what permitted her to become pregnant while wearing a gigai remained unresolved. For now, they practiced safe sex at all times and concentrated on raising the beautiful children they had been given.

Which brought up another source of concern…

"Ichigo?"

"Mmm?" he mumbled sleepily.

"Do you think we should tell them?"

This caused him to rouse fully, and he sat up to regard her steadily. "You mean the whole truth?" She nodded, and he considered this, frowning. "Jaku might be old enough to get it, but Hiruko…? I'm not so sure."

"When I spoke to Mayuri recently," Rukia noticed the flash of irritation at the mere mention of the man's name, "he brought up something that made me think of this. Our family is in danger, even if it seems safe now. We have come under attack." She noticed he rubbed his knee agitatedly then, and laid a gentle hand over it. When Ichigo grew still, his lover proceeded. "We still don't know the full truth of what is happening, but our children? They know nothing. I would rather they keep their innocence for as long as possible. However that decision may not be up to us. At the least, they should know there are those in this world and beyond who might mean them harm."

"Yeah, but… I mean, Hiruko…" It was hard to admit, but he finally got it out. "She can't see spirits. Not you, not me… nothing. How are we supposed to tell a toddler she might be hurt by something she can't even see? It would freak her out."

"It's what she can see that concerns me. The ones who are in this world. Ichimaru, Matsumoto. Unohana, even, for whatever reason. She might not truly mean to hurt us, but she is! Ichigo…" Here she leaned forward and cupped his face in her hands. "We need to talk to them. Help them understand what's going on. Kujaku at the very least has to know. Hiruko… maybe. If she can be made to believe it."

He gazed into her eyes, then acquiesced with a weary nod. "Alright." Then, to her surprise, he chuckled. "Hey, you know, I just thought of something funny! Those crazy stories Jaku comes up with… we're finally going to top him! And the best part is, it's all true!"

The more he thought about it, the funnier it became, until Ichigo was laughing for real. Watching him, Rukia gave a snort of amusement. Then she too chuckled, and finally, without really knowing why, she joined him in helpless laughter until they were both rolling around on the floor to wind up in each other's arms, smiling through tears before finally sharing a kiss.

After this they were very careful, as usual.

---

Tōshirō dreamed of explosions. Like the one that just… exploded right in his face…? Wait, that was…

Fireworks.

Like colored snow, only it hadn't been snowing then. They were all together on a rooftop watching the pyrotechnic panorama. Winter just started with his birthday, after all. That's what they were celebrating. Him, Rangiku, Momo, and Aizen. Last time I remembered this was when I was dying in the underground complex of the Central 46. Or wait, much more recently, I was…

This is a dream. And I'm not alone here, am I?

The fireworks continued to erupt overhead, bathing the white walls of Seireitei in shades of blue, red and green. Hitsugaya sat with his friends (enemy) and looked to the little boy beside him. "I know you," he said simply.

The kid looked around, and hugged himself as though cold. "I'm Kujaku."

That's right. Rukia's son. We just met a little while ago. "Are you cold?" the young captain asked. "Do you want my coat?" He started to take off his scarf, realized that was wrong, and stopped, debating. How do I do this, really?

"No."

Kujaku was shivering, but not from any chill, he realized. More like he's afraid of something. "What's wrong?"

The child hung his head. Then he wordlessly lifted a finger and pointed.

A few feet away, Captain Aizen Sosuke of the Fifth Division stood with a scarf wrapped around his neck, flashes of colored light reflecting off his glasses as he gazed serenely at the sky. So handsome, and loving. Hitsugaya saw Momo steal a glance at him and smile happily, like the sight of him warmed her more than any fur coat or gloves possibly could.

Tōshirō understood. "You don't have to worry," he assured the boy. "He can't hurt you. Because this all happened long ago. Before you were born."

Still the little soul huddled in on himself as though afraid to move. It was only natural to fear someone so clearly evil. Only I didn't know that back then. I was as taken in by his performance as the rest of them. And I nearly died for it. Momo too. She had me completely fooled. As for Rangiku… she never had to. Her heart held no deceit. I know that, even now.

Hold on. I didn't know all this back then. So how does he?

Hitsugaya looked at the boy, whose eyes remained locked on that gallant figure, ignoring the beautiful winter fireworks display. "Kujaku?"

Sad brown eyes finally focused on him.

"How do you know that man?"

For a while they just looked at one another, lit by riots of color. At last, the boy found his voice. "He was in the house… in the woods. He scared the old lady who lived there."

"What old lady?"

"The old lady who lived alone in the woods. He was talking to someone invisible, but the old lady came home, and he got scared and tried to run. Then she got scared, and the invisible voice was scared too, because she could see them, and it said to kill her, and he was going to, but then she…"

His voice trailed off.

"What?" Tōshirō pressed insistently. "What happened then?"

Kujaku hung his head. "I'm not s'pposed to talk about that," he whispered. "Usagi Yue will get mad. He scares me when he's mad."

"Who is…?"

"Blanquito! You awake?"

Am I… what?

The obvious answer presented itself. I hurt too much to be asleep.

Grimacing at the pain, Hitsugaya sat upright. His vision swam so badly he feared throwing up and settled for putting his head between his knees. That helped. Half numb and half throbbing with pain, he finally turned to learn who was addressing him. Nothing other than the rolling dunes of Hueco Mundo could be seen.

"Down here."

When he looked a bit lower, it was to find a small black-and-white monkey crouched by his side. It lifted a finger to its brow and saluted. "Yoh."

"Noboru?"

"Yup." The polymorph bared his teeth in a friendly smirk. "How do you feel? I could use some healing kidō if that's any help. Only fair to warn you, though, Feng says I have no talent for it. Want I should try anyway?"

Tōshirō still wasn't quite clear on what was happening. "What are you doing here?"

"Who, me?" The primate hopped around in a circle. "Just passing by." When the look Hitsugaya gave him showed that excuse wasn't flying, he grabbed his feet to rock back and forth. "Okay, you got me! I was spying on you. It's my mission for today. Feng said I was supposed to keep watch without being detected and report back to her. I've been with you since before leaving Soul Society. Pretty impressive, eh?"

His skin no longer felt like it was on fire, so Hitsugaya decided his life was not in any real danger. A more pressing question presented itself. "If I'm not supposed to know you're here, why are we having this conversation?"

Noboru heaved a sigh. "Well, I kept up after the midget blasted you halfway across the desert, but still, you were in pretty sorry shape. So I sent a hell butterfly to let Tit-Tats know where to find you." He managed to look disgruntled while still being a monkey. "Which makes it for a good cause, but knowing Feng, she still won't care. Guess I blew it for today. No treat for Noboru."

"Sorry." He was starting to feel dizzy again, and chose to lie back down. "And thanks."

"You're welcome."

They said nothing more for a while. 'Tit-Tats' must be Neliel and Renji. By now Tōshirō understood Noboru's tendency to make cute nicknames for his colleagues, having long grown used to more of the same from Lieutenant Kusajishi. He couldn't quite recall what she normally called him. But after what just happened, he was absolutely certain he would never take her to task over it. That girl… you did not want to get on her bad side.

Hitsugaya found himself staring at a crescent moon floating in the sky. This and his current line of thought reminded him of something. Fear… the moon… what did he call it?

"Usagi Yue…"

"You lookin' at the rabbit in the moon?" Noboru asked. He too lay back to get a better view. "Can't really see it." Then his voice grew contemplative. "Hey, you ever wonder why the moon here has phases? Like, is Hueco Mundo a sphere or something? Does it have an end, or just go on forever in all directions? Is it flat like a map, maybe? Or is there a middle somewhere? Do you hear anything?"

He had been perfectly content to just let the kid ramble while he waited to be rescued, but Tōshirō noted the sudden change in Noboru's voice and craned his head around to regard him. "What? Is someone coming? I don't feel anything."

"I only just now realized I was hearing it. Like a background noise. Listen, hear that?"

Hitsugaya shook his head. Those small simian features looked puzzled. There was no longer any gaiety to be found in Noboru. He twisted his head one way, then another, ears pricking. "Almost like someone's… singing… but no words. And it's… they're…"

Noboru turned to look at Tōshirō, his bright black eyes wide with dismay. "Grieving."

Frowning, the captain grew still to listen. But all he could make out was a low wind accompanied by faint rumbling. There was no intimation of either danger to himself or any other soul nearby. "I don't hear it."

Noboru began pacing around on all fours. The ice mage sat up to get a better look at their environment. He could feel the prince's distress, and it concerned him. Upon rising, he finally noticed something that had escaped his attention 'til now. The source of the noisome wind from before became apparent. For there, reaching up to the sky in an awesome display of power, was the dead zone of Hueco Mundo. The endless sandstorm twisted and coiled on itself like a beast in pain, a seemingly solid wall of churning white sand and tempest winds strong enough to strip flesh off the bone.

He gazed at this intimidating natural fury for a time while Noboru prowled the sandbar restlessly. Then a new sound faintly reached his ears, and with it an unmistakable reiatsu.

"Captain…!"

They both turned. Galloping towards them across the dunes came Neliel tu Odelschvank. The centaur arrancar raced with blazing speed, practically plowing through the desert and far outpacing a small group of shinigami behind her.

"Here comes our sweet ride," Noboru snickered.

"You have no idea."

"What?" the monkey frowned at him.

"Nothing!"

He hastily hopped to his feet, stumbling down the hill of sand to meet the approaching rescue party. Neliel drew up short with Gamuza strapped to her back, one hoof pawing the sand restlessly as Tōshirō and the monkey drew closer. She smiled down at them. "I'm glad you're all right, Captain. Your little friend made it sound like we might be in danger of losing you."

"Thanks for the concern, but I'm fine, really." When she just kept right on flashing that sweet smile, he blushed and turned his face away. "I got in over my head."

"Hopefully you learned your lesson." The green-haired beauty then patted her broad, shaggy lower half. "Okay, hop up."

Hitsugaya blinked. "E-Excuse me?"

"I'll give you both a lift back to camp." Her horned head tilted to one side. "Unless you'd prefer I carry you in my arms?"

The mental image and resulting lifelong humiliation left him dazed at the prospect.

"No objections here!" To the young captain's dismay, a fully human Noboru went dashing past him and leapt lightly onto Nel's back, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his head in that mass of viridian locks. "Ahh! Now this is what I call riding in style!" He threw a self-satisfied smirk at Tōshirō. "C'mon, Blanquito, don't keep the lady waiting."

Right now Hitsugaya would have given his captaincy for a valid excuse not to go. Regrettably none came to mind, and with a measure of reluctance he approached the four-legged fighter. She extended her hand and he took it, swinging to mount up behind Noboru. A small, envious part of him resented the Shihoin heir claiming the front seat, as it were. Meant he got to be closer to her more… human aspects.

"Don't worry." Nel threw a glance over her shoulder right at Tōshirō, and he paled at the way her voice dropped an octave. "We'll take it nice and slow together." So saying, she set off at a brisk, even pace such that neither of her riders need fear being thrown off.

Fuming, the captain of Leopard Company dug his hands into her pelt and clamped his legs as tight as he dared around her broad flanks. He could have sworn he heard Nel giggle, and hoped their journey didn't last long enough to get any ideas. They passed through the crowd of shinigami followers, who moved to trail their mistress without question. A few threw dark looks at Tōshirō as though cursing him for daring to claim such a seat.

"Hey, it's gone."

He turned his attention to his fellow passenger. Rather than gloating over this level of closeness to the sexy arrancar, Noboru had a distant, searching look on his face. His eyes scanned the dunes reflectively. "What?" Hitsugaya asked.

"The song. It stopped. I don't hear it anymore. Went away just like that."

He failed to elaborate, and Tōshirō decided not to pursue the matter. He had his own problems to worry about. Bad enough having been put to rout by a child at play. Now the proud First Seat of Leopard Squad must resolve to bear this very unnerving mode of transportation along with the resulting gossip it must surely entail.

Mayhap it will serve to teach you not to bite off more than you can chew.

You… you know what, Hyōrinmaru? I'm just going to enjoy this as much as I possibly can.

Bless me. Perhaps you are growing up after all?

And I've got the cat ears to prove it.

Having come to this resolution, Tōshirō Hitsugaya was surprised to find himself taking a certain measure of delight at riding across the desert atop a beautiful centaur lady. Whether it be the joy of a child or the more mature interests of an adult, he accepted the experience with cheer. Perhaps as a result of this bonhomie, the rest of his day proved quite pleasant. Seems a positive attitude had its merits. Who'd have thought?

---

"Match point!" the karate instructor called out. "Stand up and show respect to your opponent, Kurosaki-kun."

Little Shotoku did as he was told, clambering off the mat and bowing to the victorious girl across from him. They both trotted over to join the rest of their class preparing to observe the next match.

Watching from the sidelines, Tatsuki Arisawa chewed her cheek with a grimace. "Your son doesn't seem that broken up about losing," she pointed out as the boy began excitedly talking with his classmates.

Beside her Ichigo shrugged off such concerns. "He's five years old," he informed her as if that settled the discussion.

"His opponent was three," she felt the need to point out to him.

"Yeah, and flippin' huge for that age," the young parent countered angrily. "Seriously, she's got a good three inches on him. What is up with that? Maybe I should talk to the coach."

How could someone possibly be this blind? Maybe it was the whole parenthood thing.

"Ichigo," Tatsuki said his name with a little more emphasis so that he actually looked at her. "I'm serious. Age and height aren't the issue here. Your son doesn't have any fight in him! It's been bothering me for a while now. His whole style is defensive. He's practically begging them to wail on him! When you were his age, you weren't much better, but at least you knew how to throw a punch!"

"I think you've got the wrong idea about this, Tatsuki." Her childhood friend smiled and gave a thumbs-up to his son. The boy threw him a happy grin, and he turned back to their conversation. "The whole point of karate at any age is to learn to defend yourself, not to beat people bloody. If Shoto can make it through a scrap without a scratch on him, that's really all I care about."

"You have knocked out more human teeth than I have socks, buster," she snapped back, itching to throw a punch. "Don't give me this pacifistic bullshit. You really think you would have survived middle school and beyond if you hadn't been willing to kick some ass? Oushima Reichi would have been wearing your orange head as a hat."

To her disgust, the big lunk just laughed at her morbid excuse for a joke. "Speaking of Oushima, can you believe him and Asano's sister getting together like that? And all because they both wound up tangling with an actual ghost on Don Kanonji's new show! Talk about a ratings boost."

She punched him in the arm, making him wince. "Don't try to change the subject. Let me teach Shoto how to really fight! At the very least, I'm one instructor you wouldn't have to worry about paying."

Ichigo heaved a sigh. "Look, Tatsuki, I know this is how you make a living nowadays, but… not everything has to be a brawl, okay?"

Her teeth ground together, fighting the urges rushing through her blood. Since when did this guy become such a pansy?! "I can't believe you," she hissed. "What if that psycho Unohana comes sniffing around your son again when none of us are around? Do you want him to roll over and play dead, or do you want him to kick the witch's teeth in, huh?!"

That got his blood up. She could see it in the way his face lapsed into that old familiar scowl, and the master combatant exulted at the prospect of a good fight. C'mon, gimme your best shot! Let's show these kids how it's really done!

To her disappointment, Ichigo simply uncrossed his arms and pushed off the wall. "I'd want my son to make better choices than I did."

And he walked over to talk to one of the other parents, leaving Tatsuki Arisawa stewing.

'What is the point of all this?'

"Pipe down, Bat-Boy." She licked her lips, still spoiling for a fight.

'If you insist on keeping me captive, you can at least strive to make my imprisonment less tedious.'

"Tedoious? Please. I've seen the world you came from. It's got to be the most boring plane of existence in existence! Why don't you at least appreciate the opportunity to get some fresh air and live a little?"

'The futile, frightened lives you human slugs lead holds no appeal for me. In the grand scheme of things, your accomplishments are meaningless. The petty dreams of a doomed species clutching its sense of undeserved superiority and entitlement.'

"What the hell would a Hollow know about worthwhile living?" she countered. "Why don't you go chat with a few of your other cellmates, see if they'll kiss your sore loser ass and make it feel better."

The coldness in her chest was something she had learned to recognize when Ulquiorra became angry. It made her grin. "Got something you want to say to me, Sunshine?"

'I exist to kill your useless kind. Never forget that.'

"If Hollows are really so superior, why are you, an almighty vasto lorde, currently taking up space as a disembodied voice in my head, hmm?"

He had no response for that, but Tatsuki could practically feel his all-consuming resentment. Verbally taunting your opponent in, say, a karate match was definitely not allowed. But there were all sorts of ways to tic somebody off; make 'em lose their focus and open themselves up for a solid strike. Shows how much Ichigo knows; everything's a fight, and everybody's got a weakness.

She watched the way her old friend moved intently. His knee still gave him trouble even years later. Wonder if the same is true in shinigami form? Does the body follow the spirit? Hollows could cause injury to mortals just by touching them, she knew that much.

"Hey," she murmured aloud. "What happens if a person loses an arm in life? Do they get it back as a ghost, or is the loss permanent?"

Again, her subordinate made no response.

"You're the one who complained about being bored." Tatsuki covered her mouth with one hand to keep anyone from thinking she was talking to herself. "I'm willing to have a real discussion if it's more than just you bemoaning your miserable lot in life."

'An idiotic question. Physical injuries have no effect on the soul.'

"Yeah? Noboru once told me that ghosts can be harmed if they're possessing a living body. His taskmaster nearly got killed saving him from the Wild Hunt the first time they met."

Quiet. Then, grudgingly, 'There are exceptions.'

"See? You learned something new, Sparky. Class is over, you get a cookie. I wonder… does that mean if I got hurt, you would experience it when you come out?""

'You possess my strength. While we are joined, there is little that can do you harm.'

"We should test that out one of these days."

A light chiming noise got her attention. Tatsuki withdrew her cellphone. Sure enough, the silver bell attached to the strap was jingling. Seems they had business to take care of. Perfect.

She waved to get Ichigo's attention, then held up her phone and jerked a thumb over one shoulder. He got the message and raised a hand in goodbye. Tatsuki looked over at Shotoku, who had been watching and now waved at her as well. She smiled at him and gave a quick nod before heading out of the dojo.

He's a sweet kid. Always has been. Not a handful like his old man. But his little sister… well, that one was a fighter if I ever saw one. I'll have a talk with Rukia about seeing to her training myself once she's old enough. As it turned out, Princess Kuchiki was a scrappy hand-to-hand brawler herself. She would appreciate her daughter learning to kick a little ass, of that Tatsuki had no doubt.

Something to look forward to. So resolved, the Khātam Suleiman smiled to herself, and took off.

---

"Now," Kisuke spoke into the microphone, "If you would be so kind, activate your sombra."

The Hollow peered about the fluorescent chamber in which it stood, snuffling and breathing heavily.

The speaker clicked on again. "Oh, come on, be a pal! It's not as though I enjoy shocking you… but if you insist!"

Lights glowed on a collar around its neck, and the Hollow jumped with a pained squeal. When the current subsided, its spiritual signature had vanished.

"I was hoping for an update," a voice spoke from behind Kisuke. "Not S&M."

"And I aim to please." He swiveled in his chair to smile sweetly at Yoruichi Shihoin, who leaned casually against a wall with arms crossed. Urahara then rolled his chair across the office. As he did, a long tassel dropped from the ceiling. When he tugged on it, a hatch seemed to open in midair, and a sphere fell out. Almost immediately it burst open with a triumphant song and a hail of confetti, reminding Yoruichi of winning a prize at pachinko.

From out of the sphere there rolled into Kisuke's outstretched hand a small golden rectangle with four prongs. This he held out to her. "Took a few years, but here you go. As one of the few people in living memory to hold one of these before, give me your honest opinion."

"You never cease to amaze me, Kisuke." She accepted the mystical item, feeling an uncomfortable premonition as she did. The last time Yoruichi held one of these, she was running like hell from a bunch of warmongering archdemons bent on bringing down heaven itself. There hadn't been much time to really appreciate the object in question before she passed it off to Jinta. But even then, she had felt what amazing power it held. So rare, so secret; a true key to heaven.

In her hands, the King's Key shone with the promise of total ruin.

She glanced back at her old friend and servitor. "I think you did good work, as always." Yoruichi handed the artifact back to him. "So that part of the deal is taken care of. What about the rest?"

Kisuke smiled and tapped his shaggy blond head. "Safe and sound, my dear. When and if the time comes, I'll be ready to fashion another hōgyoku, and we can use it to alter the Key accordingly. Until then, it's safest right in here. My little insurance policy, in case either side starts to wonder if I'm more valuable dead than alive. More dead than usual," he added before she could call him on that.

The Lady of Shihoin raised a hand to her chin, eyes drifting to one side in contemplation. A vague sense of unease never left her. But that was only natural. Her clan dealt in uncertainties and mysteries as a fact of life. The only time you were allowed to be completely at rest was when all your enemies were dead. And realistically, not even then.

"What are you thinking, dear Yoruichi?"

"That there's still a lot we don't know."

"Exactly the thing that gets me out of bed in the morning," he assured her, sprawling at ease in his chair with legs flung out and hands laced over his stomach. His flippant attitude was more reassuring than annoying, but not by much. "For instance," the lazy genius lifted a dramatic finger on high, "why did Aizen order the Wild Hunt to kill your son seven years ago?"

Golden eyes normally abounding with life now regarded him with chilly dispassion. "Do you have a theory on that score?"

"I do." His voice had turned grim. This was a sensitive topic around her, and the affable genius knew it. He indicated towards the window separating them from the Hollow's chamber.

"We figured out long ago that the arrancar which infected Renji Abarai at Hollow's Bog, the one who could hide Hollow spiritual signatures, was used as the basis for developing sombras. And since your first brief encounter with a vasto lorde way back, we've known their breed can detach parts of themselves to form separate Hollows. After studying samples of both, I concluded Renji's opponent was another one of these component 'children.' Since they're made up of countless souls, it's possible that vasto lorde, Tia Halibel, was not the only one capable of this feat."

"What has that got to do with Noboru?"

Kisuke shook his head. "Nothing. That line Gin fed you about him being the Hunt's natural enemy was probably just a bluff. I've come to believe that Aizen manipulated us again. He didn't want to kill Noboru: he wanted to get your attention, and thereby have you order me to start thinking of a way to destroy the Hunt."

Egotistical? Yes. But Kisuke never spoke through his hat, as it were. "And he did this because…?"

Urahara stood up. "I think the Wild Hunt, and Cernunnos specifically, might be an offspring of Fenris Wolf, the original vasto lorde."

Yoruichi caught her breath. She considered his statement with a measure of dread. That monster, the one the Shiba clan kept safely locked away for generations, the one Aizen set free and now went by the name Coyote Stark… could it really be true?

Though deeply troubled, her posture and tone remained relaxed. "Why do you believe that?"

"Little details here and there." He beckoned for her to follow, and they left the room together. Kisuke snagged his cane from by the door and tapped it along the floor as they walked down a brightly lit hallway leading back to his private quarters. "Remember Jigoku? On the day of your wedding, Hell's emissary surprised us all when it suddenly moved to attack the human Tatsuki Arisawa upon her entry into Soul Society. And thanks to that little escapade Noboru had a few years ago, he learned that Miss Arisawa was the one who has been keeping Ulquiorra Schiffer alive all this time. The Espada needed her living vasto lorde-infused essence to sustain himself, and she must have used that to keep a hold on him. When your son fought Halibel in the caves of Hueco Mundo, she claimed to be able to recognize her own lingering essence on the human Kunieda Ryō. Arisawa had been exposed to Ulquiorra before, which explains her value to him."

"You think Jigoku went after her because she had the essence of a vasto lorde within her?" Yoruichi asked.

"It's certainly one explanation. And a few years later, our Hell-born friend popped up again right after your son helped kill Cernunnos, still searching for this Escapee of theirs and coming up blank. That has never happened before in recorded history. Which leads me to suspect there is a connection between the Hunt and vasto lorde. Its members are completely unkillable until Cernunnos falls, we now know this to be verified on every level. And Soul Society tried for ages to kill Fenris, without success. Renji's Hollow could disguise all presence of Hollows, and Halibel spent what must have been centuries hiding in the ocean, where her spiritual presence was washed away to keep anyone from locating her. It's possible a vasto lorde's released children share some measure of similarity with their parents."

He reached the door to his office and opened it for her, letting Yoruichi pass into a den that reminded her of a bandit's hideout, jam-packed as it was with boxes, knick-knacks, strange apparatus and incomplete memoranda. Kisuke had the habits of a packrat, not all of which came from his time running a shop in the mortal world for decades.

She waded through the debris to reach a comfortably stocked alcove that held a modicum of dignity, where she seated herself in a papasan chair. "So what you're telling me is Coyote Stark split Cernunnos off from his being for some reason ages past, and ever since then it's been pillaging the mortal world?"

Kisuke dropped into a hammock across from her. "Basically."

"And you're basing this on the theory that they both possess some sort of shared invincibility."

Her vassal swung from side to side, staring at the ceiling. "Think about it. The ancient shinigami imprisoned Stark for the same reason we did Aizen's cabal: because they couldn't beat him! But after he was trapped and unable to fight back, why didn't they take the opportunity to finish the beast off? The answer: they did! But no matter what they tried, it failed. Tessai put me in touch with one of his people who specializes in the Sōkyoku halberd, because according to him, that world-ending piece of firepower was fashioned specifically to kill Fenris. Still, even that didn't cut it. They always assumed it was because Fenris was just too damn powerful. But now I'm starting to think that, like the denizens of the Wild Hunt, he simply can't die!"

"Could there be something about vasto lorde that permits them to survive certain death?" Yoruichi wondered, curling into a long-limbed ball in her cushioned dish. "Ulquiorra Schiffer… he was literally burned away to ash during the Autumn War, yet a few years later he just shows up again, no explanation given."

Kisuke waved his cane overhead as though dueling an invisible opponent. "If Aizen and Stark came to blows after Nirvana was closed, and for all his astronomical might, our aspiring king still couldn't deliver a fatal strike, he might have come to the same conclusion: that Fenris was effectively immortal. Being well-versed in matters concerning both Hollow and shinigami, however, he would have immediately remembered something similar with the Wild Hunt. Unable to reach them himself to test his theory, he instead maneuvered us to do it for him, using Noboru as the bait." He thrust forward in a patently killing stroke, held that position for a moment, and let his arm drop. "Just a theory, though."

"Which still doesn't explain how they knew about him in the first place," she pointed out.

"No ideas yet on that score, since you never even let me in on that particular secret."

Yoruichi cocked her head to one side, purple hair falling in strands over her face. "So what's this all leading up to, Kisuke? What's your conclusion?"

"Hear me out." He held up a hand. "Fact #1: Hell cannot claim damned souls if they are Hollows. We know that. Only after a shinigami has cleansed them does Hell take possession of their prey."

Another finger rose. "Fact #2: ages ago, the shinigami of Soul Society entered into a contract with Hell that specifically required them to destroy an Escapee from Hell. A damned soul, one whom the demons themselves couldn't retrieve. And why not?" His hand clenched into a fist. "Because the escaped soul they are looking for is a Hollow now."

His mistress sat up straight. "Wait… how could the damned become Hollows? It takes months for a plus to lose their heart and succumb."

He gazed at the ceiling steadily, then grinned and rolled around to face her. "That's where this theory of mine runs into a brick wall. As we know, some people destined for Hell instead become Hollows immediately after death, and can only be scooped up by the underworld after they have been purified by us. A soul that Hell was able to claim on their own the first time around could not have been a Hollow to begin with, so even if one did manage to escape for a brief period, it couldn't become a Hollow right away and the demons should have been able to recapture it almost immediately. We've long documented such cases. The damned do sometimes possess the living to evade their pursuers, but such infernal creatures tend to have short lives. Once they die, it's back to Hell for their unwilling tenants. Even if they inhabit a body that already bears a soul to form what are called Shells, they can be destroyed through specific earthly means. And the moment their bodies are slain, the mortal soul is freed from the damned completely, who are then caught. So how could the Escapee manage to evade notice long enough to become a Hollow?"

"Maybe it was never in Hell to begin with," Yoruichi pointed out. "Like I said, it could have turned into a Hollow immediately upon first dying and was just never purified by a shinigami."

Even to her, however, this sounded far-fetched. And Kisuke obviously agreed by the way he shook his head in clear dismissal. "The Contract that Nemu got from Jigoku was very specific in certain matters. One of which was not the identity of our target, unfortunately," he added with an irritated frown. "But it spelled out in stark terms that the Escapee was a damned soul who had managed to get out of Hell and remain clear of them ever since. How? We don't know for sure. But I believe that this jailbird, this Escapee that Hell has been chasing for so long, is connected to the vasto lorde problem."

Now that was interesting. "Could a Hollow actually eat a damned soul, the way they can regular pluses? It's what they do, after all. Then the Escapee would have been technically beyond reach. Maybe that's how it happened."

"Hmmm." He ducked his head, rifling through his encyclopedic memory. "Certainly one explanation. I'll check to see if there were any instances of that occurring. But it seems so far-fetched! The damned who manage to get out of Hell are only loose for a matter of seconds according to all past accounts. And we have numerous recorded instances of Hollows simply scattering when the Gates of Hell appear, like they automatically know not to get involved with the big boys. That one of them would resist this instinct and have the chance or even inclination to snap up one of the damned who fortuitously happened to be nearby… it just sounds like too much of a coincidence. I mean, they'd have to be…"

"Crazy?"

They grew silent then as something uncomfortably obvious occurred to them both. Eventually Yoruichi finished her thought. "As insane as Fenris, the Mad Wolf."

The two old friends stared at one another for a while. At last Kisuke slowly nodded. "Yes. That… is a definite option."

"So." She stood up to regard him with flat, lethal eyes. "All three of us – Nirvana, Soul Society, Hell – we're all trying to figure out how to kill something no one has ever been able to kill before."

Urahara clambered out of his swing, using his cane as support. "Feel free to tell Byakuya about this. It's certainly not my craziest idea. But whether it be a vasto lorde or one of their offspring, we've definitely got a long road ahead of us."

"You said a mouthful."

The conversation turned to less apocalyptic matters which proved much more enjoyable. Eventually Yoruichi made her goodbyes, promising to bring Noboru by for a visit at some point. For his part, Kisuke turned to the readout of his ongoing sombra experiment. The results were most pleasing. Satisfied, he pushed a button on the wall and spoke into the intercom.

"Hey, Mayuri? Just wanted to let you know I've worked out how to cancel those sombras that have been giving us headaches for a while now. Be a dear and whip up a method of administration for our forces, will you?"

A scratchy, snarky voice came back across the line. "Whatever are you rambling about, Captain? At the specific request of our Patroness, I developed a solution to that problem 18 months ago, and already incorporated it into the revolutionary Kurotsuchi-brand battle suits that are now standard issue for all shinigami! You really should stay up to date on these things."

The connection shut off with a click. The Ibis Company head stood chewing the inside of his cheek for a while, then glanced around his cluttered living space. "I need to get out of the office more," he decided.

---

Lohengrin spun round and around his scythe planted in the dirt, one arm flung out and laughing uproariously. "Wassa matter, hmm? Don'tcha get the joke? It's hilarious!" He came to a sudden unnatural halt, grinning at Inglebert as he covered the unconscious Xiomara with claymore sword drawn. "Totholtz served the Church his whole life, led their armies into battle and prayed to God every single day! But when his wife got torched…"

He drew a thumb sharply across his throat with a strangled sound. "Poof! All gone! No more good and decent man fightin' to protect Holy Mother Church!" Lohengrin dipped his hood in mock sorrow. "The very people he fought for took away his main reason for livin', and the Church sure didn't wanna raise no stink over an Ottoman wench. So they just closed their eyes, said their prayers…"

The seductress Semele floated languidly down, sliding into the crook of the pale demon's arm as though she belonged there. "… and sent him straight into the arms of Hell," she crooned sweetly.

Karin noticed that the last speaker had finally finished. He was some local business admin who urged them on with weary platitudes; Mayor Ochi had been a lot more interesting than this guy.

Surreptitiously she sneaked the earbud out and pocketed her cellphone, resolving to watch the rest later. Sitting among her classmates, all of whom had received their certificates and wearing school uniforms for the last time, she watched the principal return to the stage to conclude the ceremony.

"I would just like to briefly conclude by saying that nothing you ever considered worthwhile about high school is truly ending today," the old man announced, speaking clearly and rationally for the first time in her experience. He peered out at them with the soft, contented smile of a lifelong educator well used to this sort of emotional occasion. "The experiences and revelations you cherished are yours to keep forever, just like those certificates. The uniforms have to come back though," he added swiftly. "I don't want to see those things ending up in any pornos, you understand?"

And he's off.

Fortunately the principal's remaining words were brief as promised and rather lucid. He had done this a lot, after all. In short order, the ceremony was completed. And just like that, Karin Kurosaki had graduated high school.

She and Yuzu quickly found each other in the milling mob of overemotional students and their loved ones. The two sisters fell laughing into each other's arms, remarking about old hallmarks and marveling at having made it this far. They each took a spring of cherry blossoms from the flourishing trees, intending to press them later. Yuzu and the rest of the Astronomy Club were having a graduation/stargazing picnic on the school roof that very evening, while Karin planned to attend a beach party with the Soccer Club and several other friends. The Kurosaki siblings stood in the schoolyard while pink blossoms drifted through the air, taking one last look around as students. Then they went to make their goodbyes to the teachers, and after that, the family awaited.

"Enjoy it while you can, kids," her brother Ichigo informed them as they came trotting up, Rukia held in the crook of his arm. "College is just a few months away."

"That's all you have to say?" His not-wife gave him a gentle dig to the ribs before rounding on the two graduates with the mature, classy charm of a hundred-year-old ghost princess. "Yuzu, Karin, this is your day, and I hope you enjoy it to its utmost! We are all so very proud, and we look forward to witnessing the futures you create for yourselves."

"What she said," Ichigo affirmed, never losing his smile even when Rukia started grinding her fist into his jaw.

"You both worked very hard," Nanao Ise informed them, adjusting her glasses with a faint smile. She wore a fantastic purple kimono with blue waves churning on it and red fish leaping from the ocean. In fact, their resident sorceress looked as much like a Mom as many other parents attending their child's graduation. After so many years, perhaps there was some truth to that impression.

"Well, my task is complete." Standing beside the disguised shinigami, Isshin Kurosaki wore a presentable suit and tie and a contented look on his stubbly face. He still hadn't shaved, claiming it enhanced his appeal. "Now that all my children are full-fledged adults, it's time for me to adopt the role of Grandpa 24-7!" Reaching down, he scooped up little Hiruko in one arm and Shotoku in the other. "Can you two say congratulations to your dear aunties?"

"Congrats!" his grandson declared triumphantly, as ecstatic as though this were his own graduation. Meanwhile, Hiruko squirmed free despite her mother's protests, dropped down and raced forward to hold her clasped hands out, like she was offering her aunts something.

"What do you have there, Hiruko-chan?" Yuzu teased delightedly, kneeling to be on her level.

"I caught ghost!" the messy-haired waif informed her. "And, and now! I let him go, and boom!" She opened her hands to reveal nothing inside. "He grants your wish! Make wish!"

The younger Kurosaki looked at her sister, already on the verge of tears at how cute that was. With a sniff she turned back to her niece and stated confidently, "I wish for you to grow up strong and happy."

"No!" Hiruko insisted indignantly. "It has to be for you!"

"Alright, alright!" Yuzu laughed, wiping her reddened cheeks and crying with laughter. "I wish… to be swept off my feet by a tall, handsome man!"

Funny, Karin thought, stealing a quick look. That's my wish too.

Konpaku Shiba grinned back at her, standing somewhat off to the side as though uncertain whether or not he belonged. "You're up, little sister. What's your wish?"

She flicked a glance at him. "I wish to be brave." And I hope this wish works.

"Boom!" Hiruko threw up her arms. "I grant, your wish!"

"Boom!" Shotoku echoed his little sister, and that set them both off.

After about fifteen minutes, they had still not finished their greetings and goodbyes. Karin kept half an eye on Kon, and when it looked like he was giving an excuse to leave to her father, she dashed over and caught up to him before he could make his escape. "Hey, Kon!"

He turned to her, pale eyebrows shooting into his scalp. "What's up?"

Brave, remember? "I'm meeting some friends at the beach later. Do you wanna come?"

As expected, he didn't exactly jump with joy at the prospect. "Thanks, but isn't that a graduate thing? Maybe you should spend it with people who earned the right to celebrate."

"Well, not like you ever graduated," she shot back, having planned for this excuse. "And this might be your last chance. Shoto and Koko won't be in high school for over a decade. Have some fun while you can, Kon." Then, before she could stop herself she blurted out, "And you'll get to see girls in swimsuits!"

He looked on the verge of begging off, but perhaps noting how insistent she was, Kon finally shrugged. "Oh, what the hell, I'm in! Say, does this mean I have to go to your sister's stargazing party too?"

"No," she muttered irritably, twisting from foot to foot. He could stand to be a little more enthusiastic. "Just make sure to come, okay?"

"Alright. Send me the details, I gotta run. Bye, imoto-chan." He reached up to ruffle her hair, hesitated, and changed it to a pat on the shoulder. "You did good, kid." Then the mod slipped away into the crowd and disappeared.

Not perfect, but better than nothing.

Karin then went to speak with her friends about later. "Hey, Karin-chan," one of them called as she jogged over. "Was that your older brother you were talking to? Does he have a car? Maybe he could take a few of us to the beach later."

"Sorry," she looked over one shoulder with a grin. "He doesn't need a car."

After this they settled their plans for the evening, who was bringing what and how to get there, and Karin went home to get changed.

---

"LOOK ALIVE, DIPSHIT!" Hiyori Sarugaki swore, and brought her serrated sword down, splitting that white head in half.

"Ouch," Tōshirō tugged down the green scarf from his mouth as he sheathed his blade. He watched the Hollow's mask disintegrate along with the rest of it, leaving behind a butterfly that flapped off to Soul Society. "Are you always this respectful towards our charges?"

The scrappy waif lifted her helm with a snort and eyed him through disturbingly black eyes. "You throw a lot of shade for somebody who came begging us for training. And speaking of which…" She dropped the mask. "Think fast!"

Hyōrinmaru sprang from his scabbard in time to collide with a massive mace. Quick-draw techniques being his forte, Hitsugaya was able to divert this crushing force sufficiently to send it slamming into the sand beside him. At the same time he whirled about and slashed at his opponent. Lisa Yadomaru sprang back to land in a crouch, her monk's spade weapon held behind her in preparation for the next attack. He caught a glint of light off her glasses through the narrow slits of her visor. That position and the pleated skirt she wore actually showed off her bare legs to good advantage.

Losing focus?

More like wondering when the other leggy dame will–

"HI-YAH!"

He got his answer when a limber limb swept towards his face hard enough to decapitate him. Instead a length of chain wound around her ankle, and Mashiro Kuna was jerked off balance before being sent flying. Tōshirō spun his shikai's sickle whip round to send the insect-masked Vaizard flying toward Hiyori, but Mashiro twirled in midair, checking her flight to land right beside her short comrade. All three now moved to surround the captain.

"You know, when you said we were going Hollow hunting as training," Hitsugaya stated while turning in a slow circle, both hands gripping the hilt of his sword, "you neglected to mention I would become the target when it was over."

"Just keeping you on your toes, Taichou," Lisa sang as she strolled leisurely around him in the opposite direction. The other girls did the same, shifting their rotation whenever Tōshirō did to keep him always guessing which would strike first.

"Sure you don't wanna go bankai on us, Capitán?" Mashiro sprang lightly from one side to another like a grasshopper.

"I'm sure," he murmured, watching them carefully, feeling the dry air around him and inwardly cursing the lack of water in Hueco Mundo. Quickly he replaced the scarf around his mouth, ostensibly to prevent losing any more moisture. How was an ice mage meant to work at maximum under these conditions? But that was precisely the point. Can't always depend on the battlefield to act in your favor. Here in this realm, he had a significant handicap. And that suited him just fine.

"Y'know," Hiyori remarked as she began to twirl her oversized weapon around, "it's kinda insulting that you think you can beat all three of us like this. I mean, when we're done with you, we might just have to teach you a different lesson. Right, Mashiro?"

"Oh, yes, please!" the other Vaizard giggled. "I heard Lieutenant Matsumoto used to–"

Against his will his attention drifted to her, and right then a streak of gray magic shot through the air to wrap around his throat. The Vaizard laughed as he reached up to touch the casting of Silver Tongue, Striking Asp. They looked at one another, and with a nod, all three launched themselves at the bound fighter.

"-ding upright, silent to the end. Bakudō #75: Quintet of 1-kan Iron Pillars!"

Five huge iron girders formed out of nowhere to slam straight down. Hiyori was pinned instantly, while Lisa somersaulted free of one, only to find herself spread-eagle face down beneath a second. Mashiro made no attempt to dodge, only kicked the two incoming pillars with concussive force, sending them crashing off-course to either side of her to form an 'X'. As she did, however, the slight Vaizard sank to the ground and began nursing her legs.

"Ow!" she muttered. "That hurts! Like a billion bee stings at once!" Mashiro lifted her mask to throw a pouty look at Tōshirō, almost like she expected him to apologize for inflicting this injury on her.

From her position flat in the turf, Lisa Yadomaru discarded her own helm to look over one shoulder at the solid mass keeping her pinned down. She then returned her attention to the captain. "A complete incantation to boot." Lisa quirked a curious eyebrow. "Care to explain how you managed that with my sealing spell on you, Taichou?"

Tōshirō lowered the scarf to reveal a smug grin. In addition, doing so let them spot a band of orange magic encircling his throat, preventing her own spell from penetrating. "An old trick members of the Tenth used before going into combat," he informed them happily. "We did tend to cross swords with other shinigami, after all."

No need to mention you considered yourself above such basic tactics until being hampered by that spell yourself. Twice, no less.

They don't need to know that. And I do learn from my mistakes. Eventually…

He continued his explanation. "I thought it was strange you were taking the time to talk before attacking again. So I reasoned one of you might be quietly casting a spell behind those masks you favor wearing. Lisa was the one who stayed quiet the longest, so I figured it must be her. I just imitated your strategy. Not every spell needs to be shouted out loud."

Another lesson you learned the hard way.

The perception of superiority is just as useful as the real deal.

All of a sudden Mashiro's face brightened. "So while you've got us at your mercy, Captain, waddaya say you take us up on that whole 'afternoon delight' we mentioned?"

The frigid youth frowned. "I don't assault women, bound or otherwise."

"Pity," Yadomaru sighed. "That being the case, would you mind…?" She indicated over her shoulder.

About to disengage the spell, a thought occurred to him. "Do you surrender?"

Mashiro and Lisa exchanged a glance. "Let's call it a truce for now."

This concession served to relax him. "Alright, then. Shall we–?"

He got no further, as Hiyori lifted her masked head, and his whole world went pink.

Sometime later, Tōshirō Hitsugaya awoke to find someone sitting on his chest. "What…?" he managed to mumble, his ears still ringing. Then it hit him. Oh, right. They can use Ceros. Forgot about that.

"How's our little boy-toy doing?"

With all the dignity he could muster, the young shinigami prodigy craned his head up to spy Mashiro Kuno and Lisa Yadomaru straddling him together. "Yoh, Taichou!" the smaller girl proclaimed brightly, raising two fingers to eye level and flashing a wink that made her practically sparkle. Her taller counterpart rested chin on Mashiro's crown to regard him with cold, disapproving eyes. "You lose."

The point of a huge sword drove into the sand right beside his head, nearly costing him an ear. When Tōshirō looked up, Hiyori Sarugaki scowled down while chewing gum. She blew a big bubble 'til it popped, then snarled, "If you really want our help, don't act so goddamn superior, got it? Otherwise next time? I won't hold back."

Humiliation and an overblown sense of pride almost saw him retort back that they had already surrendered, when it occurred to him that this one in particular never actually conceded. He had initially considered her to be the weakest of the bunch in terms of spiritual power. But determination counted too. It would be wise not to underestimate these ladies in the future.

Or any women, for that matter.

After some playful teasing that might have counted as assault on a minor in some jurisdictions, they consented to let him up. Afterwards the girls retrieved their provisions and proceeded to build a charcoal fire. All four clustered around the flames while they shared rations.

On his second approach with the training proposal, the Vaizard had agreed to help him in exchange for Leopard Company contributing some small creature comforts to their notably ascetic existence. Since then, he attended these sessions lugging racy pillow books, booze, and other items whose provenance he didn't delve too deep into. The two captain-class Vaizard, Shinji Hirako and Kensei Muguruma, offered to spar with him one-on-one, but Tōshirō declined, insisting they attack him in groups of two or more so as to better simulate the experience of being overpowered. Being old comrades from their shinigami days, the combination of Kensei and Mashiro or Hiyori and Shinji were not uncommon.

The Vaizard were not quite as interested in strict rules for these bouts as Nanao Ise. Nor, at times, did they appear particularly concerned about his health, that Cero back there being a prime example. But this, too, could be considered an improvement. He wouldn't really get anywhere knowing that there was no risk of getting hurt. The whole point was to prepare him for the fatal encounter that might await him at an unspecified point in the future. According to Renji, when he brought up the topic of challenging Tōshirō again to the Kenpachi, the head of Tiger Company just laughed like it was a big joke. Small wonder, considering the way their last meeting ended. So this was as good as it got.

That was three months ago. Ever since, Tōshirō had been juggling his duties in Leopard, the stringently mandatory 'training' with Lord-Commander Kuchiki, and these personalized bouts in both Hueco Mundo and the mortal realm. At one point Byakuya intimated he was not pleased with the actions Hitsugaya had taken on his own initiative, insisting that what he termed 'reckless brawls' was not the path to self-improvement. Tōshirō said little in his defense, but was nonetheless pleased that an official order to curtail such activities never manifested. An offhand remark from Kensei during a lull in fighting might have indicated Byakuya had indeed attempted to quash their involvement on his end and been snidely repulsed. Which was exactly what Tōshirō counted on when he first sought them out.

Whether the Lord-Commander even attempted to reason with Ichigo Kurosaki was never broached. Maybe his sister had something to do with that? She could be very assertive (i.e. obstinate) when she wanted to be. However, Tōshirō had made sure to emphasize that neither the Vaizard nor Kurosaki would ever actually kill or maim him. Which he felt was the most pertinent point of their discussion.

Still somewhat sore from that sneak attack (both in terms of body and pride), Tōshirō still sought to appreciate this rather lively company. Some coaxing from Hyōrinmaru of late saw him attempting to look on the bright side of things. The three lieutenant-class Vaizard had opted to oversee his tutelage today. Now that swords had been laid down for the nonce, they opened up a barrel of brew courtesy of his own squad and proceeded to share a drink together. And it was rather cheerful company, he had to admit. The Vaizard ladies plied him for news about the Seireitei, but their interest seemed more centered in what might be better termed gossip. And in that area, Hitsugaya had to admit he was woefully uninformed.

"You're no fun, Tōshirō-kun," Mashiro lay on her stomach drawing circles in the sand. "You know, the Tenth used to be a real hotspot of simmering sexy tensions! Whole bunch of sly goings-on and what-not. Real racy stuff!"

Lisa inclined her head sagely as the firelight played in her glasses. "Indeed. I seem to recall back in my day there was a young fellow named Kenta Arakaki who had eyes for his subordinate… what was her name?"

"Sachiko Fugunushi."

All three of them turned surprised faces on Tōshirō. "Yes!" Lisa exclaimed. "Captain, have you been holding out on us? How do you know about that?"

He stared into the glowing coals. "Because she died not fifty paces away from me challenging a vasto lorde to avenge her dead lover."

This served to put a damper on their mood. The Vaizard regarded one another, as though silently asking if they should continue this line of conversation or look elsewhere for their amusement. At last Mashiro spoke up. "The Tenth did have its share of bad luck in that respect. I mean, not long before our little fiasco, there was the whole Sakezuki scandal."

To their mingled relief this seemed to garner Tōshirō's interest. "Who was that?"

"A very minor nobleman and shinigami," Lisa took up the charge. "He was a thug and a bastard, but well-connected with the right people. When some poor girl from the Rukongai caught his eye, he turned on the charm and got her to marry him. Things went south from there."

Hiyori butted in, more excited by this avenue of dialogue than their previous efforts. "And how! Sakezuki was super pissy, and one day after having a lot too much to drink, he drew on another shinigami who was making eyes at his wife and killed him! Then, when she called him out on it, he killed her too! And she was carrying his child at the time!"

"No, Hiyori, you haven't got your facts straight," Lisa added in an authoritative tone. "His wife miscarried shortly before her death. She lost the child. That's why he was drinking, and also explains why his less-than-sunny demeanor was even more rotten during that incident. It all came out at his trial."

"Hold on," Mashiro piped up. "I remember hearing about this from Kiyone Kotetsu. His wife lost the baby because Sakezuki beat her, all the time, like, really bad. They tried to introduce it at the trial, but the Central 46 said it wasn't relevant. And Sakezuki's clan was spreading around a lot of money by that point. So he wasn't found guilty. But get this, Tōshirō-kun!" She crawled towards him on all fours until her big bright eyes bore unblinkingly into his own. "Sakezuki got off, but he didn't escape justice! He was removed from the Tenth and took a position at the Shinou Academy. They didn't permit him to interact with students anymore. Then, one dark and stormy night, the guilt became too much to bear, and he–!"

"Hanged himself," her blond ally broke in smugly while downing another shot of rice wine.

The green-haired imp rounded on her in a huff. "Hiyori, you big blurt!" she objected. "I was going to draw out the denouement for a little while longer! For the sake of dramatic tension!" Mashiro drew her knees up to her chest, pouting and muttering sullenly as she nursed her drink.

"Such skullduggery was common in Soul Society at the time," Lisa stated cryptically.

At this Tōshirō, who had been rubbing his chin in thought for a while, looked up with wide eyes. "Wait, I do remember hearing about this! It was one of the 7 Academy Ghost Stories when I went there! Supposedly they found this man hanging in his office with his eyes gouged out. There was no evidence of a struggle at all or that he had been drugged or ensorcelled, so it had to be suicide! My classmates claimed he could sometimes be seen prowling the halls, dragging the rope behind him, searching for his lost eyes!"

Lisa helped herself to another cup. "A fitting end."

"Hmph!" Mashiro muttered. Then she appeared to brighten and turned back to Hiyori. "Well, here's something I bet you don't know, sister! Granny Kiyone let me in on another bit of info! Back at Sakezuki's trial, when they announced the verdict, you know who showed up outside crying and demanding to be let in? Our sightless samurai himself, Tosen!"

"That backstabbing piece of shit?" the former lieutenant growled. As she did, a very dangerous pall fell around the brazier, such that Tōshirō found himself surprised they had not all donned their masks. "How was he mixed up in that?"

Mashiro only shrugged. "Dunno. He might have known the shinigami Sakezuki killed. I know he entered the Academy around the same time because he joined our crew after graduating. After that he was, y'know, just another one of the guys. 'Til he tried to kill us all, the jerk!"

That menacing aura was growing stronger by the minute. They were also drinking a lot, which only left Tōshirō even more unnerved. Now it was his turn to try and steer the conversation out of troubled waters. "I never heard that story," he supplied quickly, sweating at the presence of this much concentrated feminine ire. "Thank you for letting me in on the history of my old division."

At this Lisa and Mashiro both smiled at him, and Hiyori grunted in what might have been a sign of acceptance. "You're welcome, Taichou," Yadomaru said. "We like to keep you well-rounded."

'Speaking of which…!" Now their limber colleague waved her saké cup, cheeks red and large eyes somewhat glassy. "Who would you say had the biggest dick in all of Seiretei in your experience?"

The other two ladies laughed aloud at this challenge but joined in readily. "We talking proportionately or just sheer mass?" Hiyori asked with academic interest. "Because if the former, it's gotta be one of the gate guardians."

Lisa stroked her long ponytail and peered speculatively at the black sky. "Jidanbo Ikkanzaka, in particular, was reputed to have the most prodigious…"

"No, wait, wait, I got it!" Hiyori jumped up, spiky horsetails bouncing and hopping from one foot to another as she glanced excitedly between her accomplices. "Mayuri Kurotsuchi!"

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" the other two screeched in near perfect mimicry of one another.

"Kid you not. One time, I walked in on him in the shower, and let me tell you, we are talking eye-popping! I don't know if it was natural or owing to some sick growth experiment he inflicted on himself, but how he manages to walk while carrying that much weight, or even wear pants…"

To Tōshirō's immense relief they seemed to have forgotten about him by this point. Which was good, because it gave him time to think. And he desperately needed that right now, because a matter of rather grave importance had caught his attention.

It was something Mashiro said while talking about the suicide's death. No evidence of foul play… no sign whatsoever that this remorseless, arrogant, vicious excuse for a death god had died in any way other than by his own hand. What does this remind me of?

It came to him then. A matter of personal experience, what he himself had seen with his own disbelieving eyes before confronting Aizen in the underground chambers of the Central 46. When he and Matsumoto came upon the long-dead government division, all of those magistrates and lawmakers had been butchered where they sat, their dried blood staining the room and themselves. And yet, were it not for the mess, he might have thought they were just sleeping upon initial examination. It looked as though they died sitting in their seats without even bothering to rise. They put up no resistance to being murdered. And several of them were former captains; out of shape or not, even a being as powerful as Aizen wouldn't have been fast enough to take them all unawares to such an extent.

A report the captains received following the traitors' defection to Hueco Mundo concluded the Central 46 must have been hypnotized by Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis at the time of death. They never even felt the swords that laid open their throats and split their heads in half. Except for one; Hiroko Shoumen, his predecessor as captain of the Tenth Division. She was killed in the most barbaric fashion after having put up an ultimately fruitless resistance. Gin was responsible for that. Hitsugaya knew it for sure. He just never understood why.

But far more than that, it opened up the possibility that this wasn't the first murder Aizen committed under the influence of his power. Could this Sakezuki person have been another of Aizen's victims? Was it somehow connected to Tosen? Perhaps they had already become aware of each other by then, and Aizen dangled the prospect of revenge in front of him to bring Kaname over to his side. After that he had him, the same way he did Momo following her first murder.

I should look into this more closely.

Tōshirō? I believe you have more pressing concerns.

It came to him then that the raunchy conversation had run its course. Now the three Vaizard were staring at him, wearing the craftiest and most untrustworthy of expressions imaginable. Tōshirō felt a tingle travel up his spine. Danger!

"Captain Hitsugaya?" Mashiro Kuna purred, eyes half-lidded as she ran her tongue over her lips. "How big are you?"

In response Tōshirō leapt back from the campfire, drawing his sword in one swift sure movement. The trio of drunken horny women rose slowly upright and began to march toward him. A terrible chill settled over the icy prodigy as he caught a glimpse of their eyes. He had never experienced cold like this before. The lowest level of Hell held no more frigid prospects.

"Get 'im," Hiyori murmured, and the masks dropped. Afterwards Hitsugaya found himself in the fight of his life, struggling madly with every drop of strength and skill in his possession to protect something even more precious than his life: namely, his dignity.

Worthy training, indeed.

---

Ryohei Toba looked her up and down with a leer. "Nice!"

He spilled his drink when Karin grabbed her childhood friend by the collar and yanked him down so they were nose-to-nose. The girl's deadpan expression immediately made him regret admitting such open appreciation. It had half been the beer talking. Still, she did blossom into a sweet babe since they were kids kicking the old soccer ball around. And this was pretty much their routine. "So congratulations on graduation, Karin-san," he mumbled weakly, and smiled.

To his surprise (and mild disappointment), she did not proceed to kick his ass. Instead the soccer phenom studied him for a moment before finally stating, "Grow up, already."

He couldn't help it. "One of us did!"

THWACK!

Ah, there you are, ground, my old friend! I've missed you.

Karin stepped over his prone form and headed back to the bonfire some of her classmates had fashioned out of driftwood. She had held back with Toba. He was who he was, and this was their night of celebration. Guess it came as no surprise he might think that he would get lucky with her.

And really, who am I to judge?

Karin twisted the hem of the short-sleeved dress shirt she wore unbuttoned. Beneath that all she had on was a one-piece swimsuit specifically purchased for just this occasion. Even Yuzu had to wonder what was taking her sister so long to pick one out at the department store. She tried on a bunch, examining herself in the dressing room mirror critically, trying to decide what suited her best. In the end, she settled on a black number with a very slight rainbow sheen and two solid white stripes running up the sides. Guess you could call this my 'little black dress.'

What the hell am I doing?

Never in her life had she felt this sick with nerves; not before a soccer match, not when her home got transported to the afterlife and she met the Hound from Crazy-town, not even when Rukia had Kujaku in the middle of a full-blown Hollow invasion. Is it because there's no one I can turn to for help? Not even Yuzu. All the same, Karin checked her shirt pocket to make sure she had her phone. Before this night is done, I might need a shoulder to cry on.

"Karin-chan!" Another old school-chum, Kazuya Usaka, offered a friendly salute by the fire where he sat with his girlfriend. "Come join us! Heita brought refreshments!"

She looked away self-consciously and shook her head. "I'm good, thanks."

"There's soda if you don't want beer," the laid-back Kei Uehara called, shaking his half-empty pop can at her. Some had privately wondered whether Kei would even graduate with them, but as it turned out, his scores were among the highest in the year-end exams. Even then, he didn't boast about it. A far cry from the anxious twerp she remembered. Talk about coming into your own.

But it was not faces from the past that concerned her now. Instead Karin stood on sandaled tip-toes, straining to see over the heads of her taller classmates. There were about thirty people here celebrating their success. Even with the addition of smuggled alcohol, things hadn't gotten out of hand. They were good kids, for the most part. I've had fun with these guys over the last twelve years. They're my classmates. I love 'em.

Great. Now I'm feeling sentimental. Wouldn't that be perfect, if I actually get all sniffly and tear-ridden just when…

"Karin!"

And there he was, strolling across the sand without a care in the world. A gust of wind blew bright orange sparks from the fire to swirl around Kon, like he was some kind of wild spirit drawn to the sound of mortal merry-making. And in a way, he was. Karin felt her stomach lurch at the sight of him even as her heart labored unnecessarily hard. Here comes the nausea express.

Mustering her resolve, she slogged across the sand towards him, taking care not to trip and fall flat on her face like some goofy anime ditz. To her immense relief that did not happen. Soon enough they were facing one another under the starry sky, with the sound of laughter and the ocean in the background. Seriously, like a damn rom-com.

She looked him up and down. He had on the same getup from her graduation ceremony, dark slacks and a white dress shirt. Only now the collar was open and his sleeves were rolled up to the elbows, giving her a good look at his muscular forearms and a peek of bare chest beneath the undershirt. Kon's face hadn't changed a bit since that day she spotted him in the park some seven years ago. He still reminded her of a cat, with those great pale blue eyes and air of mystery… that, or just perpetual cluelessness.

"You're not actually going swimming, are you?" Kon suddenly asked, brow wrinkling in worry. "It's still only March, the weather's kinda chilly."

"It's fine," she told him, irritated. But that did lead her nicely into the subject. "Do you like my swimsuit?" Karin stepped back and opened her shirt so he could get a better look. Immediately it occurred to her this was practically flashing him, and she quickly snapped her arms together, embarrassed. "I mean…"

"Yeah, it looks good on you." He said it so matter-of-factly that Karin knew she was out of danger. Thank heaven the big lug can't take a hint. Then her stand-in date for the evening jerked his head toward the bonfire. "Shall we head on over?"

A sharp nod was the best she could manage. The unlikely pair strolled back to the gathering, where Karin introduced him simply as Kon, in the hopes that none of them would recognize the Olympic gold medal winner. To her immense relief, everyone was too focused on the festivities to pay much attention to some older guy, and soon they were all chatting and reminiscing together excitedly.

It was a surprise to see how well Kon fit in here. He didn't talk much, only listened with interest to the graduates' future plans, their most embarrassing moments over the past three years, and a fair share of ribald jokes. These he happily contributed to, until the mood around the fire was one of uproarious delight. Someone passed a beer to Karin, which she accepted but didn't open.

A thought occurred to her then: maybe I should just leave it at this? I'm having a good time, and so is he. Why potentially ruin it for both of us? And let's be honest, the chances of this actually working out are low, to say the least.

Karin Kurosaki sat and watched her secret crush enjoying himself.

I'm scared. Was Ichigo this freaked out, when he and Rukia… did it? That first time, it was just like this, on the beach, and they… went off together. When I asked him one time, he said it just felt so right and natural. That's not the way I feel. Nothing's right about this. My stomach's twisting into knots.

To try and settle it, Karin popped the tab on her can and took a big swig, grimacing at the awful taste. Why would anybody drink this?! It tasted nothing like the sweet amazake drink Dad let her and Karin sample during festivals since back when they were kids. That always left her feeling mellow and happy. So if I down it all, maybe it'll give me the courage…

Really? Did I ever have to toss back a brew to get me onto the field, or pass a test, or face down a flippin' Hollow, even? Since when do I need alcohol to be brave!

Anger at herself and this whole stupid situation made Karin drop the can, where it disgorged its contents harmlessly into the hot sand. She then stood and walked off down the beach alone.

Why am I so pissed off?! At graduation, you're supposed to confess to your crush! It's tradition! And maybe they'll turn you down, but that's not a good reason to do nothing! So what's wrong? I just want to let him know how I really feel!

And if we… I mean, afterwards… Rukia and Ichigo, their first time, it was just like…

"Karin!"

To her immense dismay, Kon came running after her before she was barely out of sight of the fire. He caught up to her with ease wearing a look of concern. "What's wrong? Why'd you leave? Do you need to use the bathroom? The stalls are back over–"

She rounded on him in disbelief. "What's wrong? What's wrong?! YOU'RE what's wrong, you IDIOT!" And she shoved him so hard he landed on his butt and just sat there gaping at her.

Karin stared at him. What to do next seemed so obvious. And so before she could think herself into a mental breakdown, she walked forward, knelt down, and straddled his hips.

The moment she did, however, Karin froze. Sudden terror made her whole body go rigid. Not right, not natural! Why wasn't it happening?

She looked at Kon for help. And if she thought herself afraid, it was nothing compared to the expression on his face. Kon was horrified!

Seeing this made the most awful ache of sadness run through her bones, undeniable as any physical pain. It caused her limbs to unclench. Reaching forward, Karin twisted her fingers into his shirt like claws.

"Why?!" she gasped, fighting to keep the tears in, face twisted with grief. "I'm not some stupid kid anymore! I'm all grown up now! Why won't you look at me the way you do Rukia, or Tatsuki, or any other woman?! What am I doing wrong?!"

And now there was no point holding back the tears. They came out of their own volition regardless of what she wanted. For the first time in years, Karin Kurosaki cried.

She barely felt it when Kon sat up, or when his hands gently encircled her waist. When he picked her up to settle them both on their feet, the sobbing teen lunged forward and wrapped her arms around him, weeping into his chest. He stroked her hair, allowing her time.

"I know how you feel, Karin," he whispered overhead. "Believe me, I do. Sometimes you… don't care if you know it's wrong. If the person you want is the one you're not allowed to have… all of a sudden, nothing's simple anymore. There's just guilt, and fear, and the worry that you've screwed everything up so bad there's no putting it back together."

"But that's not love, Karin."

She was still crying without looking up, and so Kon tried to get his point across as best he could. "Love's not about how you feel. It's how you both feel. You can't just say you love somebody so much they gotta love you back. That other person's just as important as you, not less. And if they do love you… then I promise, Karin… when that happens, it won't feel wrong! Not the way you are right now. You will have everything you ever wanted then."

He took a step back, tilting her chin up so he could see her red, sniffling face. "It just hasn't happened yet, little sister. I'm sorry."

"But why not?" she demanded through shuddering breaths.

Kon gave a helpless shrug. "Karin…"

"No!"

The girl pulled away from him, angry now. Furious! Enraged!

"Don't act like a goddamn big brother, dammit! You DON'T have all the ANSWERS! Look at you, you… big blue-eyed freak!" She swept out her hand in a despairing gesture. "You don't belong in this world! You're just a mod soul!"

"Karin." More insistently.

"And I never said I liked you!" She couldn't stop talking. Her mouth was running away with itself, spilling out the first thing that came to mind regardless of rational thought. "So don't get so goddamn full of yourself! What, you thought I brought you out here because I wanted to fuck you? Is that it, Kon? You thought you were gonna get a chance to do the dirty on the beach, just like Ichigo did with Rukia when she kicked your sorry ass to the cu–!"

Her head snapped to one side.

For a few seconds Karin just stood there, panting heavily. It didn't even hurt. At first. But then the stinging pain settled in, and she rounded on Kon, mouth open in shock as her cheek began to burn. His face turned red, then white. His outstretched hand started to shake along with the rest of him. "Karin," he rasped in a curiously dead voice, "I…"

She ran.

"Wait!"

He grabbed her sleeve, but she tore violently free, feeling the cloth rip. Karin dreaded to look back, but after a while, it was clear Kon had not given chase. He would have caught her in an instant. She raced back to the bonfire, past her friends. One of them called out to her, but she didn't stop for an instant. Instead the hurt and humiliated young woman ran, off the beach, up the rise, past the bus stop and down the road. After a while she yanked the phone from her pocket and after a few failed attempts managed to dial the right preset. Even as it rang, Karin never stopped running.

"Karin-chan?"

"Yuzu!" she sobbed. "Come pick me up! I'm…"

---

Ichigo was already awake by 6 AM to make the most of the day. He had an early training session with Tōshirō, then work at the dojo, stop by to check on the new grads and see how their parties went, and perhaps more grueling than anything else, the long-delayed talk with the kids about Mom and Dad both being shinigami. Can't wait to see how that turns out.

To his dismay when he came out into the hall, the sound of crying came from his little boy's room. Ichigo went and knocked on the door, used to this sort of thing by now. "Little man?" he called softly. "I'm coming in."

When he did it was to find Shotoku sitting up in bed with face buried in his knees. This one looked bad. Spying on other people's dreams might sound sweet to adults, but when you were only four years old, that sort of thing could lead to some pretty traumatic moments. Standard routine in this house. Having long experience, the young parent went and sat on the boy's bed, placing his arm around him. "What's up?"

Shoto wouldn't look at him. "I had a… b-bad dream!"

No surprise there. "Can you tell me about it? Dad wants to help." When his son only huddled in on himself harder, he began to get worried. This might be one of the really nasty ones. "Shoto? It's okay. You don't have to keep it to yourself. Did you see something scary?"

Softly then, Ichigo heard, "It was Kon."

"Kon?" That was certainly something new. He couldn't recall ever hearing about his son experiencing one of Kon's dreams, from either of them. "What happened to him?"

"He was… naked…"

Uh-oh. Warning! WARNING!

"A-and he was sitting down, and holding a girl, and she was n-naked, and…"

"Rukia! RUKIA!" Ichigo shouted desperately. "Need your help here!"

Fortunately the lad's mother came readily before his strident bellows turned into shrill notes of panic. He explained the situation as delicately as possible before turning it over to her. Ichigo then made good on his escape, feeling absolutely no shame in doing so. If this actually turned out to be one of Kon's kinky sex fantasies about Rukia, better she deal with it than him. Otherwise he might wind up stabbing the little sex fiend… or himself, depending on how bad it really was.

After grabbing a quick breakfast and shower, the dedicated twenty-something kissed his daughter goodbye and swept out of the kitchen, tugging his shoes on and hoisting a shinai over one shoulder. Lot to do today.

Opening the front of the shop, he nearly ran straight into someone. "Whoah!"

The person standing in front of the Usagi Shoten turned out to be a teenager, with blond hair and a nervous expression. Before Ichigo could ask what he was doing here, he stammered out, "K… Kurosaki-san?"

"Yeah?" Do I know this kid? Seems familiar. Yellow hair… dyed? Nope, not ringing any bells.

"It's me, Toba… Ryohei Toba?" He sketched a shaky bow. "Karin's friend."

"Oh, right." Now he remembered. "You need something?"

"I wanted to ask about… Karin."

Ichigo frowned. "What about her?"

"Last night… the party, I mean… when that guy showed up…"

Ichigo tensed. Before him the distraught youth twisted in on himself anxiously. He looked wretched, but it was nothing to how he would feel if he didn't spit out what happened to Karin! "What are you talking about?"

Toba gave a small start. "You don't know? Last night, at the beach party, this guy named Kon showed up, and the two of them went off together. I was a little worried, but before I could go and check up on her, she came running back. I could see she was crying, which freaked me out because, y'know, Karin never cries! And it looked like her shirt was torn. I tried to get her to talk to me, but she just ran off, and when I went to look for that guy, he was gone too. I wasn't sure about asking her directly, so I thought maybe you–"

By this point he was talking to himself. Ichigo had already torn by him and gone racing down the street.

For once his knee didn't bother him. Or if it did, he didn't feel it. Ichigo Kurosaki ran without regard for anything that might get in his way, dodging traffic and nearly ramming into the few people out on the streets this early. In no time he found himself standing before the Kurosaki Clinic. It was there his exhaustion caught up with him, and he spent a minute trying to catch his breath. Hobbling now that the adrenaline was wearing off, he marched up to the front door, unlocked it and stumbled inside.

"Karin?" he called out raggedly. "Dad?"

"Ichi-nii?"

Yuzu! Sounded like it came from upstairs. He hopped hastily up the steps. The door to his old room was open. The anxious elder brother moved swiftly forward, and there they both were, sitting on the bed, holding one another.

Everything around him went quiet. Ichigo did not say a word. He just observed what lay before him. Yuzu had her arms around her sister, who was crying without stop. Her head was buried in her twin's chest while the younger girl held on tight. They were both in pajamas. That struck him as weird. Yuzu gazed at him in clear distress. "Ichi-nii, it'll be fine," she said.

Fine? Fine?! What the hell did that mean?! What happened, did somebody…?

At this, Karin seemed to become aware of his presence. She stopped crying and looked up in surprise. "Ichigo?"

It was then he saw the bruise on her cheek.

Afterward Ichigo vaguely remembered them calling out to him, but he certainly didn't recall having left the house. He was just running again, ignoring the piercing stabs of pain in his leg with every footfall, tearing down streets and rounding corners without any sense of where he was going. Why, however… that he knew full well.

"… he was sitting down, and holding a girl, and she was n-naked…"

My son saw. In a dream, he saw… he saw what he did! What Kon did! To my sister! MY LITTLE SISTER!

Ichigo didn't know how far he ran before his knee finally gave out to send him sprawling. He lay in some nondescript lane panting and shaking uncontrollably. Where was I going? I don't even know where the bastard lives! What, do I give him a call and ask where would be a good place to meet?! No… no, I have another way! A better way! No fucking cripple can deal with this! I'm a goddamn SHINIGAMI!

With that he slipped the tube of gikongan pills from his pocket to pop one into his mouth. And then Ichigo Kurosaki's soul was roaring free, no longer bound by his broken body, a god of death unleashed upon the world. His way was so clear now, so simple. Placing Zangetsu on the ground, he sketched out a circle in the pavement before him, glowing lines appearing where they passed as he divided it into quadrants.

"Heart of the south, eye of the north," he gasped, concentrating intently like never before. "Finger of the west, foot of the east, arrive with the wind and depart with the rain! Bakudō #58: Summon of the Tracking Sparrows!"

The circle glowed blue, symbols beginning to flash across its surface. Ichigo stared at them, waiting for the spell to lock on.

THERE! He had his answer, and went shooting into the sky.

Fields and streams, highways and hamlets swept behind him. It proved to be a fairly short trip. The bastard hadn't gotten very far at all. He should have run farther, to the ends of the Earth, to Soul Society, for all I care! Not that it would do him any good! I'm COMING FOR YOU…!

"KON!"

Standing in a forest, the mod soul leapt nimbly aside as that mass of cosmic fury came crashing down on the spot he had so recently vacated. Kon landed and stood upright, ashen-faced. "Ichigo," he croaked.

The red-haired death god rose slowly from his landing point. Surprisingly, he did not attack. Instead he came stalking forward until only a few feet of space separated them. Kon made no move to escape. Probably because he knew it was impossible.

They stared at one another, as around them birds flew chirping from one branch to the next and foxes prowled in search of prey, seeking rabbits or a tasty pheasant. The world around them barely reacted to their presence.

At last Ichigo spoke. "Did you do it?"

Kon's hands hung limply at his sides. He looked ragged, worn-out, like he'd spent the night in the woods. There was a sweet ringing sound coming from his pocket. Other than this he made no sound.

"Answer me, dammit," Ichigo breathed, barely able to restrain the righteous fury he felt inside. "Did you…" He drew in a deep breath to fairly scream, "KON, DID YOU RAPE MY LITTLE SISTER?!"

The mod's mouth opened, but no words came out. His head shook slightly from side to side. Whether a denial or some kind of nervous twitch, this mute slack-jawed look of idiocy cost Ichigo his last shred of control. He raised the enormous blade of Zangetsu over one shoulder, cloth bandages unleashing with a snap. For half a heartbeat he hesitated, waiting, praying that something would happen to make everything clear once again.

It didn't, and uttering a scream of rage, Ichigo swung.

Kon closed his eyes.

No.

The blade stopped a hair's-breadth from his neck.

Ichigo gaped in disbelief. Before him there stood a tall warrior with long curly hair dressed in a form-concealing black cloak. His eyes were covered by tinted shades, and stubble grew on his gaunt cheeks. This imposing figure had one arm extended, pale fingers held securely around Zangetsu's edge, preventing it from moving even the smallest distance towards Kon.

He is not guilty of this crime, Ichigo.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW?" the anguished youth screamed desperately.

I know. And I will not permit you to kill one whom you call brother over a misunderstanding.

"Misunderstanding?" he protested in disbelief. "This piece of shit, he might have–!"

"Stop it."

Right then a small figure stepped from behind Zangetsu's cloak to regard him, and Ichigo cringed at the sight. It was a little boy with orange hair, glaring at him with bitter distaste.

"You don't get to act like this anymore. There's no more excuse. So just stop it."

Ichigo looked at Kon. The mod remained where he was, eyes shut, face calm and without fear. There was nothing to indicate a guilty conscience. Cowed and frightened, he withdrew his soul cutter. The paired specters disappeared as he did.

At last Ichigo found his voice. "Kon, I'm…"

A swirl of black feathers erupted in front of him. So unexpected was this Ichigo could only stare, and then a fist punched him in the jaw to send him flying high into the sky.

Kon finally opened his eyes, to find a Tengu before him. She glanced over her shoulder. "Here." A swirl of silk sailed through the air, which he automatically caught. "Take it and get lost, lover boy." She turned back to regard the cloud-spotted heavens above. "I got this."

There was no choice but to obey. He lifted the fabric on high. It expanded out to phenomenal length, winding to encase him in a skein of magic. And then Kon was gone.

Satisfied, the Tengu crouched down, spread her single wing, and launched herself skywards.

Meanwhile Ichigo had finally gotten his bearings. Whatever hit him, it seemed to have sent him halfway across the province. His ears were ringing, and he shook his head to try and clear it. What the hell was that?! Felt like an aircraft carrier rammed into me at Mach 8!

"Well, lookit what we got here!"

This eerily distorted voice was all the warning he got, as before him there suddenly hung a dire figure. It was short, with a lean build evident by the arms, the top side of which were covered in black feathers. The creature sported black hakusho trousers, a sleeveless karate gi, and a white bird skull mask that hid its face. Tangled black hair ran down its back, from which there grew a single ebon-feathered wing. Its bare feet had the curved talons of a bird of prey, with smaller matching sets for fingernails. There was no sense of spirit power coming off this thing, but it floated among the clouds without even bothering to flap its single pinion.

"What the hell?" Ichigo breathed. Then, upon realizing the danger, "Bankai!"

His second release blew all clouds in the vicinity clear to the horizon. Flocks of birds took flight in a panic below. As the maelstrom of black energy cleared, Ichigo stepped forth in full Tensa Zangetsu regalia.

The Tengu cocked its avian head to one side. "Now that's what I'm talkin' about."

Next thing he knew black talons came screaming towards his chest. Ichigo brought up his blade, and the creature's hand scraped along the edge, drawing sparks. To his amazement he felt himself being pushed back. The Tengu uttered an exultant laugh, then whipped around unspeakably fast and drove its heel into his stomach, sending him flying once again.

This time Ichigo righted himself in record time and came tearing back ready for combat. The enemy was fast and strong, but its claws had failed to penetrate his bankai's coat, which could mean he had the advantage in terms of defense. Still, there certainly wasn't time for spellcasting. This was made clear when the Tengu came soaring to meet him.

"Gimme your best shot, amateur!"

Well, they did ask. "GETSUGA TENSHOU!"

The avian nemesis swerved in mid-air, flying parallel to the blast of dark energy so that it went streaking harmlessly by while still speeding on the attack. Ichigo, however, was no longer there. Instead he took advantage of the momentary distraction offered by his finishing move and flash-stepped in from the right, aiming to chop off his opponent's wing. Spiritual or not, something told him the bird demon needed that appendage to remain airborne.

His black blade connected with the shadowy plumage and stopped dead, like striking steel. Not even a single feather was cut. Ichigo quickly realized he had underestimated the creature's armor, but before he could draw back a sinewy hand seized him by the ankle. The shinigami substitute quickly flipped his katana to take an inverted grip on the sword's handle, then brought it around in a chopping arc. It struck the feathery forearm and rebounded once again.

"Seriously? I could have lost an arm!"

Before he knew it the Tengu had yanked him down, grasped his sword hand by the wrist and twisted it expertly behind his back. Kurosaki gagged as he felt the bones in his shoulder protest this treatment. It was all he could do to keep from dropping Zangetsu. Cripes, how strong is this guy?

The enemy's legs wrapped around his waist to keep him pinned, and then both arms encircled his neck. Choke hold! He grabbed a wrist to try and pry them off, but though he strained with all his might, the enemy only tightened their hold, resisting his efforts.

"Nighty-night, Red."

Ichigo had never been choked out as a spirit, but he knew how it worked in terms of human bodies. Pressure applied to the carotid artery resulted in unconsciousness, at which point he would be helpless. No way to cast a spell, sword arm immobilized, enemy out of reach. Well, nothing for it but to unleash another Tensa Zangetsu backwards at point-blank range and hope I don't kill us both.

It was then he noticed the sudden drop in temperature. Ice crystals twinkled in the air like diamonds.

"Pretty…"

A gleaming sword drove straight for her eye, forcing the Tengu to release her catch and twist aside. Ichigo tore free and spun around to deliver a slash of his own. The aerial enemy fell back from their combined attack to regard her increased number of opponents.

"Thanks," Ichigo breathed raggedly as his ally drifted over to his side.

"Don't mention it," Tōshirō Hitsugaya replied, sporting the wings and tail of a dragon. He frowned at where the Tengu continued to appraise them, its feathers drifting lazily back and forth. "What is that thing? A Hollow?"

"If it is, it's a damn vasto lorde." Ichigo stole a quick glance at his pupil. "Double team?"

Hitsugaya smirked. "Like old times."

They prepared to launch themselves at the Tengu, which had flung out its arms and legs, fingers spread and spoiling for a fight. "Oh, this is gettin' GOOD!" it crowed. "I am gonna kick your smug, dye-job asses from here to the Ryukyus!"

About to engage in pitched battle, all three paused upon hearing a faint ringing sound, like a small silver bell.

A growl emerged from the Tengu's throat, and it jammed a hand into one pocket to come out with a cellphone. "WHAT?!"

Tōshirō and Ichigo exchanged questioning glances. Did that really just happen? They continued to peer at their attacker warily, as though suspecting a trap.

For her part, the Tengu listened without comment for a time to the person on the other end of the line, then muttered, "Fine…" With that she pocketed the device and seemed to sag forward with a desultory sigh, arms dangling and head drooping.

She then clenched her fists, threw back her head and uttered a piercing scream of inhuman rage! The two shinigami blanched at this awful cry and took a firm grip on their weapons.

That bone helm came down to stare at them through black empty eyes. Then with liquid grace, the Tengu swept them a grandiose bow, her wing spreading out to the full as she did. "Later, gents."

The plume of feathers drifted down to cover her whole body. It swept out, and the enemy had vanished, her wing disappearing a moment later.

Neither of them cared to dwell on this. Ichigo heaved a grateful sigh and rounded on his young comrade. "So how did you find me, anyway?"

"A blind Hollow with no ears, nose or tongue would have no trouble sensing your reiatsu, Kurosaki," the little captain threw back. Sweat froze on his face, and he was irritated at the way his hands shook slightly. "You broadcast your presence, even when not in bankai."

They both drifted down towards the forest floor. Ichigo remembered his reason for being out here, and grew uncomfortable. He could see no sign of Kon. One other topic needed to be addressed. "Did my Dad call you?"

"Your sister Karin, actually." Hitsugaya took note of the way Ichigo shuddered at her name, and quickly strove to deliver the news. "She called Nanao while we were waiting for your arrival. There wasn't much time to explain, but she insisted I tell you that Kon wasn't to blame. He slapped her, but that's all. She wants you to come back so that she can explain everything." He glanced around. "Where is Kon, then?"

"I don't know." Their feet touched the soil. The shinigami substitute appeared ready to collapse. Tōshirō had never seen him like this; it left him more unnerved than when facing that thing back there. Then Ichigo looked over and said in a tired, defeated voice, "I couldn't kill him. You know? He's… like a brother to me."

The snow spirit watched this tragic figure. At last he came to a decision. "I know how that feels, Kurosaki. Whatever comes next… try to remember how much they mean to you."

The two shinigami headed home, then, and the difficult questions that awaited them.

---

Nanao was somewhat surprised when Tōshirō asked her for a gigai so that he could accompany her, but they quickly made arrangements. Captain and former lieutenant soon found themselves at the Kurosaki house. An unusually grim-faced Isshin at first appeared ready to ask him to leave but changed his mind after a brief conversation with Nanao.

Tōshirō sat in the living room, remembering how boisterous it had all been the last time he was here. Now the house felt disturbingly quiet. As though it were in mourning. No sounds came from the kitchen. The family members, Nanao included, were all upstairs having a talk. He made no effort to intrude any further upon their private moment. Nor could he say why it had seemed appropriate to insist on coming here in the first place. It just felt… wrong to slip away and ignore it.

Nanao and Isshin came downstairs first. They spoke quietly in the hallway for a while, then hugged, and she left. The runaway shinigami noticed Tōshirō sitting there. He made to speak, but finally just shook his head and trooped back to his office.

Ichigo joined him a few minutes later. Tōshirō stood up. "Is she all right?"

"Yeah." He still had that exhausted bearing that weighed down his every movement. Ichigo stumbled into the room and sank into a chair. He put his head in his hands and groaned. "Dammit… this day sucks."

Hitsugaya wasn't sure why he said what he did next. "May I speak to her?"

This earned him a look from Ichigo. Like he now viewed everyone as a potential threat to his little sister. But eventually he just gave a weary nod. "They might want to be alone."

"I understand."

He climbed the steps and followed the sound of conversation. Tōshirō stood outside the room. "Excuse me… may I come in?"

After a bit Yuzu came to the door and looked at him inquiringly. She turned back inside, and some silent communication passed between them. With a nod she stepped back to let him enter.

Karin Kurosaki sat on her bed. She had an ice pad pressed to her cheek. When she saw Tōshirō, the teen looked at her twin and held out the pad. "Yuzu?" she said in a weak voice.

"Of course." Subdued, her sister accepted it and headed out the door, casting a warning look at Tōshirō that only served to make him feel sad. He stood against the wall uncomfortably with hands tucked in his pockets. What exactly did I plan to do here?

"Thanks for helping my brother today."

He lifted his head, blinking. "My pleasure."

They watched each other, perhaps both registering how awkward this felt. At last Tōshirō said, "I didn't ask what happened. So as not to intrude, but… if you want to talk, I'll listen."

Karin turned her attention out the window. "No. Thanks." Then she dropped her head with a groan. "I want to make this day go away, you know? Like jump in a time machine, grab my old self and shake me until I see just how much of a mess I made of things."

Oddly, this was something he could commiserate on. "I felt the same way after Aizen cut me and my best friend down."

"Oh." She continued to stare at the sky. "Are they okay now?"

"I don't know. She's missing. I hope so."

Karin nodded. "I hope Kon's okay too, wherever he is."

"Probably not," he had to admit. "I get the feeling your brother gave him quite a scare. I was scared as well, to be honest."

"About what?"

"Dying. The thing we fought today was a monster. It made me break out in a cold sweat."

Karin turned a frankly puzzled look on him. "Funny. I never thought a dead person would be scared of death."

He lifted his eyebrows and shrugged, as if to say, 'Go figure.' Then, after thinking about it for a moment he added, "Your brother said something interesting earlier. In reference to Kon, he said… 'I couldn't kill him.' I got the impression that he didn't just mean back then. More like he couldn't bring himself to do it at all. And that reminded me of… someone I knew. A person I trusted implicitly. When I learned what they were really like… even knowing how far they've fallen, I don't think I have it in me to put a stop to them."

His eyes drifted to the floor. "For a while now, I've been forcing myself to try and get stronger. But the truth is I'm just… weak. And the people I have to face are frighteningly strong, and very sure of themselves. My friends, the ones trying to help me like your brother, they all have my best interest at heart. And while I appreciate that, I can't help but feel that when the time comes, I'm going to let them down again, just like I did my friend before. I was never able to put a stop to the monsters I've faced on my own."

Hitsugaya looked up then, and said in a calm voice, "Challenging my friends won't be enough. They could never bring themselves to really hurt me. If I want to prevail, I should challenge the monsters."

Perhaps it was just the sight of one more person he couldn't help, even if there had been practically no way to do so. But Tōshirō knew he had made his decision.

When he looked at Karin, it was to find she had curled up against her pillow and was fast asleep. At first he didn't know what to do, but the obvious option was to leave her in peace. After further consideration, he stepped forward and draped the blanket over her as gently as possible. The human teen did not stir as he made his way out.

Running into Yuzu coming up the stairs, he explained her sister was sleeping. She thanked him for keeping Karin company before heading in to watch over her. Hitsugaya made his goodbyes to Ichigo, who promised to reschedule their session, to which he agreed. No sense giving up on a promising training partner. Or a convenient alibi, either.

"Actually, Kurosaki, before I go, there's something I was meaning to talk to you about. It concerns a dream I had, and your son…"

Five minutes later he walked out of the house and down the street. Rather than going back to the Usagi Shoten to store his gigai, Hitsugaya walked until he found a relatively deserted section of the city. There he sat down on a nearby bench and looked around the lot. Everything was quiet. Peaceful. Orderly.

Taking a deep breath, the uncertain soul summoned a hell butterfly, gave it his message, and let it depart. Then he settled in to wait. No telling how long this might take.

Five minutes. Ten. Thirty. He passed the time by leafing through a manga someone had dropped beneath the bench. The plot concerned vampires. It was hard to make out much sense just coming in at the middle like this.

As he was puzzling over the pronunciation of 'Totholtz', a pair of arms slid around his neck, and two very large, warm, soft cushions proceeded to envelop his head from both sides.

A vein throbbed in Tōshirō's temple. "Matsumoto…" he growled.

"Hello, Handsome. I got your message."

She withdrew her two deadliest weapons, then strolled around the bench so he could get a good look at her. Rangiku Matsumoto crouched down, placed her elbows to either side of him on the seat and rested her chin on her intertwined fingers, smiling in that way she did which was both tantalizing and intimidating. "What can I do ya for, Taichou?"

Strangely, all his previous insecurity was nowhere to be found. Let's get down to business. "You said you were willing to push me past my limits."

He had expected a sexual innuendo. Instead his former lieutenant cocked her head to one side and watched him with a serious, almost sad expression. "And are you willing to let us, Captain?"

Us. That confirmed for him just how dangerous this really was. But all Tōshirō said was, "Yes."

Just like that Matsumoto stood up. "Okay, then." And she held out her hand.

He took it. At the same time, she dragged off the kerchief around her neck and let it unwind. The teleportation charm did its work. Moments later, the lot was empty once more.

---

"I know it's strange, and you might not believe at first, not really." Ichigo reached out to touch Hiruko's knee, who had grown bored and was trying to crawl away in search of food or toys. His three-year-old daughter returned her attention to him. Shotoku took his little sister's hand, and she stopped fussing. "But now, we are going to prove that ghosts are real."

He turned to Rukia and they exchanged a nod. She then popped a gikongan pill, exiting her mortal form dressed as a shinigami. Shotoku waved at her in high excitement as always, and she returned the gesture fondly. Hiruko, of course, saw nothing out of the ordinary.

"Now, as I was saying…"

"Pyon!"

"As I was saying…!" he repeated with a warning glare at Chappy, who just stuck Rukia's tongue out at him, making Hiruko laugh. "I am going to put this silly putty in my ears and plug them up. See?" He proceeded to do so. "Now I can't hear anything. Next, I will turn around to face the wall and put this bucket on my head. Chappy, do not take a picture of this!"

"But Byakuya Kuchiki-sama would pay to see it!"

Rukia chastised her servant, who subsided with a moody grumble.

"Alright. So I can't see or hear. Chappy?" Ichigo registered his own voice as a buzzing echo in his head. He waited as the faux soul began to shuffle a stack of over a hundred different photographs. Chappy then spread them in a line face down in front of the kids and tapped his shoulder to let him know they were ready. Funny how this was Kon's idea, from our last year of high school, at the cultural festival. Sure impressed the customers back then…

"Shotoku? You go first. Pick a picture, but do not tell me what is on it!"

Again he waited. After a moment, Rukia spoke the answer in his ear, and he said, "Your picture is a boat on the ocean with orange sails!"

Next came Hiruko's turn.

"A giraffe eating leaves off a tree."

Shotoku again. There was an excited clamor behind him as the kids got more into it and Chappy had to keep them from going wild with this new game. "The planet Earth. Our home with all of us in front of it getting our picture taken. A daisy… no, sounds like a tulip, thanks, Rukia. Ow! Next? Americans playing basketball. Sakura trees in bloom. A green frog with big red eyes. The city of… Tokyo. Farmers harvesting vegetables. Aunt Karin and Aunt Yuzu at their graduation."

He felt a desperate tugging on his shirt. Ichigo removed his stylish head covering and homemade earplugs, turning to find Hiruko jumping up and down behind him. "Me! Me!" She stretched out her tiny hands in desperation. "Me the buttet! I wan' see ghosts!"

"It's not the bucket, princess," he sighed, setting it down and picking her up to plant a kiss on her crown. His restless daughter squirmed free and snatched up the bucket to place it over her head. She swung this way and that, then began walking around with her hands out, lost her balance and had to sit down. The sight of her new helmet twisting around in search of spirits was just so adorable he had to laugh.

By now Rukia had adopted her earthly guise once more and moved to extricate their second-born from her self-imposed prison. She brought Hiruko back and placed her next to Shoto again for the wrap-up.

"Alright. Let's summarize." Ichigo picked up the drawing board again where Rukia's contribution could be found. He pointed at a smiling bear with curly hair and glasses. "Who's this?"

"Zen," Shotoku said, giggling.

"Aizen," his father corrected him. "And he is…?"

"Bad."

"Yes. Aizen is very bad. If you see him, you run away. Hiruko?"

She was still peering inside the bucket looking for ghosts. "What?"

"Sweetie, look here. Who did we say this is?" He now pointed out a smiling silver-haired serpent with closed eyes. "Hiruko? You said it before, say it again. What is the smiling man's name?"

"Jean."

"Gin. Gin Ichimaru," he repeated to emphasize this. "Silver hair. And Gin is…?"

"Scary," Shotoku proclaimed triumphantly.

"That's right. Gin Ichimaru is a very scary man. If you ever see a man who smiles and has silver hair… and is missing two fingers on his left hand, thanks, Rukia… you run. Now, who is this?" Next came a blonde teddy-bear with big pink lips. This one was Hiruko's favorite.

Sure enough, she cried out before her brother could. "Masuto!"

"Matsumoto. Very good, princess. Her name is Matsumoto, and she is sex… I mean, scary. She's very scary. Almost as scary as your mother is looking right now." Here he silently appealed to Rukia with his eyes asking for forgiveness. "And finally… this one. What is this person's name, the lady with a ponytail in front. The most important one."

This time they said it in unison. "Unohana."

"Yes. Unohana. Unohana is a witch. If you see any of these people, you run away. Don't let them catch you. We are going to leave your mother's incredible drawings up in the kitchen so you remember to run from them every day. Alright, Hiruko is being a fussy-pants, so she can go play. Shoto? Wait."

About to go chasing off after his already vanished sister, their little prince sat back like a sweet-faced miniature Byakuya. He looked at his parents expectantly. They took each other by the hand and sat across from him.

"Shotoku," Rukia said kindly. "You've told us before about your dream friend, Usagi Yue."

He nodded in high spirits at this topic. "Yes!"

"And the man with glasses. Aizen." She pointed out his drawing, as though determined to prove this was an accurate representation of the man in question. "You've seen him in dreams, yes?"

Now the boy grew very still and only nodded in agreement.

"But he never spoke to you," Ichigo pressed. A shake of the head said 'no.'

"I see." Rukia placed a hand to her chin in thought. At last she reached a decision. "Shotoku, what sort of games do you often play with Usagi Yue."

"Telling stories." He was looking at the floor now, fidgeting and running his fingers over the tatami mats. "Hide and seek. Drawing. Usagi Yue loves drawing. He's the best at it."

His parents looked at one another.

"We need you to do something the next time you see him. And Shoto, this is very important, so you have to remember."

---

When the transport concluded, Hitsugaya found himself in a rough-hewn tunnel of some kind. It looked to be carved through the rock. Torches lined the passage at regular intervals, but their flames burned green. The floor was quite flat and polished smooth.

Matsumoto brushed past him. "Follow me, Taichou."

They proceeded along the way together. A sense of magic hung heavy in the air. At certain points while walking, Rangiku reached out to touch a specific part of the tunnel surface, whether it be on walls, floor or ceiling. In doing so, he felt the certain tug of traps being disengaged and recognized Never-ending Road. All who set out on this path without knowing exactly how to disarm such perils would find themselves walking along it forever. Or until something else killed them.

At least they reached the end and came out into a massive cavern. Here greater attention had been paid to crafting the rocky environment. More torches flickered in sconces along tremendous wooden pillars spaced at regular intervals in rows leading away from them. The tiled path, bedecked with images of deities long since fallen out of favor, led straight through this forest of support columns. The beams ended to create a cleared space towards the far side of the cavern. Here a huge bronze statue of an angry Shinto deity glared at a point off to the right while crushing a demon beneath its foot, body poised to do battle, round eyes blazing and tusked mouth open as though about to spit a defiant curse.

They were not alone here. Small knots of people were spaced well apart from each other, watching them as they passed. To his surprise, Tōshirō recognized several of them. There was the ryoka Sado Yasutora, who accompanied Ichigo Kurosaki to rescue Rukia from Soul Society before the war. With him was a tall young woman with long dark hair, her face mostly covered by a small book held before it so that only her calm, penetrating eyes could be seen. To his discomfort, further off there sat a lone Hollow, a small female arrancar who shot a glare at him from her single eye, the other being covered by a mask fragment shaped like a chameleon's head.

But the real shock came when he spotted Konpaku Shiba, of all people. The mod soul squatted on his haunches beside two other figures to regard Tōshirō with world-weary dismay. Or wait… was it two? The human girl leaning forward against his back wore clothes that were distressingly similar to those of the Tengu he had fought earlier that day. Only she boasted no mask or feathers of any kind; just a confident smirk that promised challenge in the days ahead. The other figure… was hard to place. It was like a shadow, standing at the girl's side. It had what might be wings, and horns grew from its head. This dark form too watched him, and a terrible sense of familiarity stole over Tōshirō at its perusal. As though it knew him somehow.

Rangiku kept walking until they reached the raised platform before the statue where ceremonies were once performed. Atop this elevated perch, hands tucked into his white robe and a mocking smile on his face, stood Gin Ichimaru. The former Third Division captain waited upon the ex-lieutenant of Squad Ten to climb the short flight of stairs. She sauntered up to him, draping an arm around Gin's shoulders while he wound his own around her waist.

They both turned to Tōshirō where he remained stunned at the base of the stairs, and smiled in a disturbingly similar manner. "Guess you were right, pet," the murderous clown sneered down at his avowed nemesis. "He finally made a move."

"I told you it wouldn't be long." She gave him a kiss on the cheek before returning to studying Tōshirō with her bewitching blue eyes. "Well, Captain Hitsugaya?" Matsumoto sang. "Are you ready to get started?"

The small shinigami threw a glance over each shoulder at the array of malcontents. At last he looked back to the two miscreants who stood above him, their hair shimmering in silver and gold.

"I'll do whatever it takes," he said.

At that, Ichimaru's leer grew wider. "Yer gonna regret those words, Shiro-chan."

---

The sound of a mallet striking mochi drew Kujaku across the dreamy field of flowers. Sure enough, Usagi Yue was there, making sweets as usual. "Ho, young prince!" the rabbit greeted him, stopping to set the butt of his mallet on the ground and stand with paw on hip, pink nose atwitch. "I've been expecting you for some time. Would you like a turn at making mochi?"

"No, thank you." Kujaku looked briefly around, and then said quickly, "I want to draw."

"Ah. Splendid." The bunny baker dusted off his paws and came trotting over, lifting his feet very high and slapping them along. "What would you like to draw?"

Sheets of paper drifted down to land in piles around them. Usagi Yue set his mallet on the grass head first and popped off the handle, revealing a brush on its tip and a hole in the mallet head filled with ink. He then produced a smaller brush from the other end and handed it to Jaku.

He remembered what he was supposed to say next. "Let's play a drawing game."

Usagi Yue's ears twitched and he crossed his arms. "A drawing game? That is new. How ever do we play this game?"

"We pick someone, and then we both draw that person."

"Acceptable." The Moon Rabbit sat back and rocked on his fuzzy white tail. "Since you are the guest, you may pick first. Whom shall we draw?"

"We'll draw… me!"

"I thought as much."

They each selected a blank page and got to work. Both finished at the same time. The papers then rose off the ground and hung side by side. Kujaku's drawing was a little lopsided, but he made sure to get the right number of fingers, since Usagi Yue was kind of strict about that. His own representation, on the other hand, was so close to lifelike it resembled a black-and-white photograph. Kujaku almost wanted to shake the picture's hand, it looked so real.

"You're the best, Usagi Yue!" the boy giggled, and his fluffy friend bowed modestly.

"For my drawing, I choose… Byakuya Kuchiki!"

The two artists bent over their craft again. This time Kujaku had fun putting in his uncle's hair ornaments and long scarf which he always wore. He decided to have Byakuya-ojisan be smiling, although he could never recall having seen him do so before. Afterwards they examined the results side-by-side again.

"I like that you made his head so much bigger than his body," Usagi Yue observed. "I feel that it truly captures the essence of the man, beyond any mere passing resemblance."

Kujaku wasn't sure what that meant, but had to ask. "Usagi Yue, why are his eyes crooked in your drawing?"

"Not crooked, young prince. He is simply contemplating his own nose. Yes, I do believe he is fascinated with that imperious schnoz." The rabbit chuckled, then turned back to his fellow artist. "Who is next?"

Now was the most important one. He had to remember the name, get it exactly right. Otherwise it wouldn't work. "I would like us to draw…"

Usagi Yue turned to a new sheet of paper, pen poised in readiness to begin.

"… Sosuke Aizen."

The rabbit paused. Slowly, he looked over his shoulder at Kujaku. That red eye almost seemed to glow, and on his back, the black patch squirmed and writhed. Then with regal leisure, he turned back to his canvas and began to paint.

For some reason, Kujaku finished before him this time. He picked up his drawing and went to see what was happening. Usagi Yue did not comment on this; he was absorbed in the creation of the artwork that lay before him. His brush moved back and forth, teasing out shapes, adding lines to create the impression of depth. Far more detail was added here than ever before. When he was finally done, the result was a life-sized impression of a handsome man in a white cloak, with curly hair and merry eyes behind square-rimmed glasses. This time the effect was so real he seemed ready to walk off the page.

Usagi Yue stepped back to study his masterpiece for a while. Eventually he noticed Kujaku beside him. "What do you think?"

The boy had never seen anything so amazing. "It's perfect," he murmured.

The rabbit nodded in sage fashion. Then, in a lighter tone of voice he said, "May I see yours?"

Hesitantly, Jaku turned the page. Drawn on it was a crude picture of a rabbit holding a mallet, with a black spot on his back.

Usagi Yue stared at this without blinking. "Ah," was all he said. Then he looked back at his own creation. Kujaku did the same.

When he did, the painting winked at him.

The boy gasped. His drawing fell from his hand. At the same time, the portrait of Aizen Sosuke moved again. It stepped forward, off the paper, transforming as it did into a flesh-and-blood man. Kujaku's eyes had grown huge. His mouth hung open, and he looked to Usagi Yue to confirm if this was real. But at his side there was no longer a rabbit to be found. Instead where his own paper had fallen, there now lay a perfect illustration of his lifelong playmate, leaping atop the moon with his paw raised as though bidding him goodbye.

"Well met, Kujaku Kuchiki."

His gaze snapped up. Standing before him wearing the robes of a shinigami captain, Aizen Sosuke inclined his head with a bow.

"I am glad we can finally speak openly with one another. For many years now, I have eagerly anticipated the point when disguises would no longer be necessary between us. Now, here you are, and here I am." That suave figure raised a hand to touch his breast. "So then, young Master Kuchiki… is there anything you wish to ask me?"

Kujaku turned and fled.

Aizen watched him go 'til he was out of sight. Then he gave a sad shake of his head, as though lamenting the tragic circumstances which bound them both. With that, he dismissed the illusory children's garden that had served him so well up 'til now, and began to create anew.

---

Hiruko walked through a field of white flowers she had never seen before. They seemed to go on forever, stretching atop gently rolling hills to meet the rosy horizon which signified dawn. It was a sad place. Maybe because she was feeling sad? Even after everything that happened today, she still hadn't met a ghost. Why did Jaku get to see them and not her? It wasn't fair.

After a while she noticed something strange. There looked to be an open space in the field of flowers. Curious, the girl headed towards this, wondering if it held something special, like treasure, or a magic pool.

To her surprise, when she finally reached the circular clearing, within it she found a bird.

It was a big bird. Bigger than the songbirds that built their nests in trees, but not as big as the ostrich at the zoo. More like her size. But it had a very long tail, much longer than the rest of its body. It was very beautiful, with pure white feathers and funny black drawings on its tremendous tail that looked like eyes, with a red dot in the center of each. The bird lay on the soft grass as though asleep. Its eyes were closed. It did not stir at her approach.

Hiruko sank down beside the strange animal. "You alive?" she whispered.

Still it made no move.

Hesitantly she reached out to stroke its feathers. They were soft as could be, and warm to the touch. For some reason Hiruko felt very reassured by this. She knelt to lay her head atop the bird's body. It was like the most wonderful pillow, and without reservation she snuggled against it and closed her eyes contentedly. They lay together like this for some small while.

Then, very slowly, the bird's long tail drew delicately around with a rustling sound to encircle her small form in a feathered blanket. Hiruko shifted slightly, but her eyes stayed shut, as did the bird's.

But now, it wore a smile.

To be continued…